BANCROFT 
LIBRARY 

<> 

THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 
OF  CALIFORNIA 


PLEA    FOR    THE    INDIANS; 


WITH 


FACTS  AND  FEATURES 


THE   LATE   WAR    IN    OREGON 


BY 

JOHN     BEESON. 


"Not  claim  hereditary— not  the  trust 
Of  frank  election—    •    •    • 
Not  even  the  high,  anointing  hand  of  Heaven, 
Can  authorize  oppression,  give  a  law 
For  lawless  power,  wed  faith  to  violation, 
OB  reason  build  misrule,  or  justly  bind 
Allegiance  to  injustice.     Tyranny 
Absolves  all  faith ;  and  who  invades  my  right, 
Howe'er  his  own  commence,  can  never  be 
But  a  Usurper." 


NEW   YORK: 
UBLISHED    BY    JOHN    BEESON, 

No.    16   LAIGBLT    STREET. 
..OR   SALE   BY   ALL   BOOKSELLERS. 

1858. 


Fivm  the  New  York  Tribune. 

A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS  ;  With  Facts  and  Features  of  the  Late  War  in 
Oregon.    By  JOHN  BEESON.  12mo./  pp.  143.    John  Beeson. 

The  author  of  this  forcible  tract  is  a  philanthropic  Englishman,  who 
from  a  long  residence  in  Oregon,  has  become  deeply  interested  in  the  fate 
of  the  Indians  in  that  locality,  while  he  is  also  convinced  that  they  have, 
suffered  signal  wrongs  at  the  hands  of  the  white  inhabitants.  He  relates 
a  multiplicity  of  facts  showing  the  aggressive  tendencies  of  the  American 
settlers,  and  the  provocations  received  from  them  by  the  Indians  prior  to 
*he  recent  bloody  conflicts.  His  little  work  abounds  in  acts  and  incidents 
'Jlustratative  of  the  character  of  the  aborigines,  and  fully  sustaining  the 
admirable  policy  of  Penn,  under  which  it  is  stated  by  an  eminent  historian 
:Sat  "not  a  drop  of  Quaker  blood  w  s  ever  shed  by  an  Indian."  1'r.  Bee- 
son  is  sanguine  in  his  anticipations  /  the  improvement  and  civilisation  •'•? 
the  native  tr'.bes  on  the  -O-egon  Ri^  S — he  pleads  their  cause  v  'tu  b~>' 
ness  and  ardor—  powerful,  f  representing  Iheir  claims  on  tht  justice 
humanity  of  their  more  '  'rbly  favored  neighbors — and  faithfully  rebuking 
the  selfishness,  tyranny,  and 'indifference  of  which  they  have  been  made 
the  victims.  We  cordially  i-o.  .-mmend  his  OP  ay  to  tlv>  'Attention  of  philan 
thropic  readers.  His  birni>:  jiarrativ,  of  :  vonal  eAperience  cannot  fail 
to  find  its  way  to  the  hear*  Xo  on  •  can  i\  ' :  its  i upreseive  though  un 
pretending  details  without  being  in?  ed  ;1J  "espect  for  the  sincerity 
anu  benevolence  of  the  writ  r,  aud  \  th  *  est  wishes  for  the  suc 
cess  of  the  cause,  of  which  he  is  n<r  .imo<-  ->ry  voice  crying  in 
the  wilderness." 


From  the  Nati^r-t  Em. 

^  J  ,EA  FOR  THE  INDIANS  ;  with  Facts  and  Features  of  the  1  ite  War  in  Or 
egon  ;  by  John  Beeson.    New  York :  publisliod  ;  y  .foha  lieeson,  No.  15 
Laight  Street.    For  sale  by  all  jboctaeUers.    Price,   25  cents,  sing'e 
copy.    For  $1  four  copies  will  be  sent  to  any  desired  address,  post  paid. 
Address  John  Beeson,  15  Laight  St.,  New  York.  " 
This  is  an  exceedingly  interesting  and  valuable  pamphlet  of  144  duode" 
jimo  pages.    The  author  appears  to  be  a  true-hearted,  self-  sacrificing 
philanthropist,  and  is  devoting  himself  with  uncompromising  fidelity  anfl 
E^al  to  the  cause  of  the  greviously  wronged  Indians.    The   seventee" 
chapters  of  this  work  are  filled  with  telling  facts  and  comments,  which 
ought  to  be  read  by  this  whole  grasping  nation  ;  that  all  who  have  living 
Consciences  and  good  feelings  may  realize  the  intolerable  wrongs  persist 
ently  perpetrated  on  the  poor  Aborigines.    It  is  sickening,  it  is  dreadful 
to  think  that  such  unprincipled  covetousuess,  recklessness  and  humanity 
as  are  narrated  in  this  pamphlet,  have  characterized  our  Pacific  Territori- 
alists.    But  so  has  it  been  eastward  and  northward,  all  through  the  conti 
nent,  with  only  a  few  noble  exceptions.    J\Ii.gltt  has  made  right,  and  the 
extermination  of  the  weaker  party  has  followed,   as  the  natural   result. 
We  understand  that  the  author,  Mr.  Beeson,  is  an  intelligent,  upright  de 
serving  man,  of  moderate  pecuniary  resources,  and  these  heartily  devoted 
to  his  mission.    For  his  sake,  their  sake,  righteousness'  sake,  our  country's 
sake,  and  humanity's  sake,  we  hope  his  "Plea"  will  have  an  extensive  sale 
and  a  general  perusal  throughout  our  country.    Especially  let  the  philan 
thropic  and  reformatory  aid  in  giving  it  circulation. 


PLEA    FOR    THE    INDIANS; 


WITH 


FACTS  AND  FEATURES 


THE   LATE   WAR    IN    OREGON 


BY 

JOHN     BEESON. 


'  Not  claim  hereditary — not  the  trust 
Of  frank  election—    »    *    * 
Not  even  the  high,  anointing  hand  of  Heaven, 
Can  authorize  oppression,  give  a  law 
For  lawless  power,  wed  faith  to  violation, 
On  reason  build  misrule,  or  justly  bind 
Allegiance  to  injustice.    Tyranny 
Absolves  all  faith ;  and  who  invades  my  right, 
Howe'er  his  own  commence,  can  never  be 
But  a  Usurper." 


NEW   YORK: 

PUBLISHED    BY    JOHN    BEESOff, 

No.    15   LAIG-HT   STREET. 
..  OR   SALE   BY   ALL   BOOKSELLERS. 

1858. 


if?/ 


Entered,  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  In  the  year  186T,  by 

JOHN    BEESON, 

Ift  lie  Clerk's  Office  of  the  District  Court  of  the  Southern  District  o? 
New  York. 


HOLMAIC,  Printer  and  Stereotj-|/:T, 
Corner  Centre  and  White  Sta.,  N.  1'. 


II  tl  6 


PREFACE  TO   THE  THIRD  EDITIOK 

IN  accordance  with  the  wishes  of  several  friends,  those 
portions  of  this  work  which  relate  to  Therapeutics  and 
Theology,  have  been  carefully  revised,  and  so  far  modified 
as  a  strict  sense  of  truth,  and  the  right  of  individual  judg 
ment  would  allow.  It  was  not  written  to  please  the  fancy, 
to  gain  honor  or  wealth,  nor  even  merely  to  get  up  a  be 
nevolent  effort  in  behalf  of  the  Indians.  The  object  was 
rather  to  speak  from  their  stand-point,  and  to  make  public 
those  hidden  yet  real  reasons  why  they  are  perishing  be 
fore  (what  is  called)  the  march  of  civilization.  As  there 
are  now  clearer  views  of  Keligion — of  human  relations, 
needs  and  capacities,  than  were  known  when  Railroads 
were  not  in  use,  and  Telegraphs  were  unthought  of,  I  had 
hoped  to  indicate  measures  more  consonant  with  this  age 
of  progress,  and  by  truthful  adaptation  to  nature,  at  once 
put  a  stop  to  Indian  Massacres  and  Border  "Wars. 

In  regard  to  Therapeutics,  it  is  demonstrable  that,  foi 
practical  purposes,  the  Indians  have  at  least  as  good  a  sys 
tern  as  we  possess.  So,  kind  Reader,  I  pray  you  to  read 
this  Book  in  the  spirit  of  that  charity  which  is  spoken  of 
as  not  being  "  easily  provoked,  but  gentle,  and  easy  to  be  en 
treated,  enduring  all  things,  and  full  of  mercy  and  good 

works."  JOHN  BEESON. 

December  15,  1857. 


TABLE  OP  CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER    I. 

FIBST  SIGHT  OF  THE  INDIANS. 

Reasons  for  Writing — Commencement  of  the  Journey — Frontier  Indians — Pony  and 
Dog  vehicles — Sick  Cow  taken  by  Indians— Unjust  demand  of  the  Whites— The 
treacherous  Assault — Indian  Retaliation — Best  means",of  extending  Christianity  and 
Civilization 9 

CHAPTER    II. 

CONTINUED  WRONGS. 

Squatter  Sovereigns — Hunting  spirit  develops  into  Murde* — Destruction,  Timidity, 
and  Grateful  Character  of  the  Indians — Advantage  of  Peaceful  Arrangements — Dis 
covery  of  Canoe,  and  Seizure  of  Fish— Slanderous  Stories  against  the  Indian— His 
Right  to  be  heard— Degrading  names  applied  to  the  Race,  and  the  results— Titles  of 
Dignity— Atrocious  Murder,  and  abuse  of  the  Remains  of  an  Indian— Slaughter  of 
Indians  by  California  Traders — Policy  of  conciliating  Indians — Vengeance  on  the 
Emigrants — Revenge  a  Point  of  Conscience — Testimonies  of  Distinguished  Men — Dr. 
McLaughlin  and  Captain  Smith— Mail-carrier  shot— Unjust  Retaliation  of  the 
Whites— Retort  of  the  Indians 15 

CHAPTER   III 

OPENING  OF  WAR. 

Beauties  and  Position  of  the  Valley— Early  Confederacy—Joyful  sensatfoiB  oft  *ter- 
ing  the  Valley,  and  perceiving  signs  of  Civilization— Apprised  of  War— Emigrants 
capture  Women  and  Children— Their  rescue  by  the  Indians— Treaty  of  Peace — 
Happy  Results — Disturbing  Elements — Misrepresentations  of  Indian  Character  and 
Claims — Abuse  of  them  a  ground  of  Public  Suffrage — Emigrants  attracted  by  a 
Prospect  of  Gain — Circumstances  tending  to  develop  the  War — Forced  Seizure  of 
Indian  Women — Sale  and  Purchase  of  them — Indian  Murders  and  Executions — No 
account  of  Murdered  Indians — Revolting  Sentiments — Abuse  of  Freedom  the  most 
dasgcfous  and  destructive  Despotism 21 

CHAPTER   IV. 

THE  WAR  SPIRIT. 

Alarm  of  the  Indians — Chiefs  plead  for  Peace — By  neglect  of  their  Claims  driven  to 
War — General  Alarm — Letter  in  the  Oregon  Statesman — Governor  Stevens' s  Proc 
lamation — Governor  Currey  calls  for  Volunteers — General  Wool  refuses  to  take  part 
in  the  War — Is  Denounced — Effort  to  Remove  both  him  and  General  Palmer — 


VI  TABLE   OF   CONTENTS. 

PAOB 

Author'sifcrue  intent  misapprehended — His  Letters  suppressed — Correspondence  of 
the  Governors  and  General  Wool— Illustration  of  War  Spirit— Mr.  Olney's  Letter 
— Indians  Peaceable  until  Disturbed— Parties  contend  for  the  honor  of  conducting 
the  War — Want  of  Moral  Power — Unchristian  Spirit — Quotations — Review — Indian 
Children — Intelligence  and  Good  Scholarship — Digger  Indians — Testimony  of  Mr. 
Chamberlain — Boy  of  Mr.  Thomas — Testimony  of  Judge  Thornton — Dr.  McLaugh- 
lin — Mr.  Hoover — Indians  possess  Social  Affections — White  Lady  and  her  Daughter 
— Authority  of  the  Gospel  still  in  force — Soldiers  themselves  disgusted  with  Bar 
barities...  .  2T 


CHAPTER  V. 

WAR    IN    THE     SOUTH. 

Southern  War  distinct  from  that  in  the  North— Testimony  of  Messrs.  Culver— Of  a 
Traveller— Illiberal  policy  of  the  New  Settlers— Dissatisfaction  of  the  Indians— At 
tack  upon  an  Aged  Indian  and  a  Boy — Danger  of  Free  Speech — Lost  Horses — A 
Party  of  Indians  Accused,  and  Eleven  Shot  Down — Forty  Indians,  Men,  Women,  and 
Children,  Murdered  on  suspicion — Aged  White  Man  Murdered,  because  friendly  to 
Indians— Truth  of  these  Barbarities  confirmed  by  Author's  experience— The  Indian 
robbed  of  his  Home  and  made  an  Outlaw — These  thoughts  bias  the  Author's  Mind 
— Tyee  Jim — His  Remonstrance — "War  incited  between  the  two  Tribes — Remnants 
retire — Stolen  Horse  charged  upon  the  Indians — Pursuit — Indian  Camp  attacked — 
Commencement  of  open  War — Indians  advance  nearer,  to  gather  Berries — Charged 
with  stealing  a  Horse — Attacked  in  their  Camp — Trivial  Dispute 


CHAPTER   VI. 

FURTHER  HOSTILITIES. 

Indians  attack  Teamsters— Three  killed— Propagation  of  Excitement— False|Alarms-— 
General  Frenzy — Court  Week — Troubles  of  Mr.  Jones — Author  recommends  Reme 
dial  Measures— Major  L.— Plan  of  General  Attack— Recommended  Massacre — Offi 
cial  Opinions — Mr.  Jones  inclined  to  the  Shooting  Plan — Agrees  to  help  muster  a 
Company — Author's  sadness  in  view  of  the  contemplated  Massacre — Brute  Force — 
Meeting  of  Citizens — Proposed  Massacre  sanctioned  by  Religious  Men  and  Minis 
ters—Author's  Speech  in  behalf  of  the  Indians— Guilt  of  the  War  charged  on 
Ministers  and  leading  Religious  Men 44 

CHAPTER  VII. 

ATROCITIES  GET  COMMONPLACE. 

Intense  Excitement— The  Attack— Horrible  Barbarities— Death  of  Major  L.— Insnlt 
to  the  Dead — Noble  Conduct  of  Captain  Smith — Causes  him  to  be  Condemned  and 
Hated — A  friendly  Tribe  assailed  and  mostly  put  to  Death — Survivors  avenge  them 
selves  by  firing  thirteen  Houses  and  killing  the  Whites— Mr.  Jones  and  Family 
among  them — Temporary  Pause — Sick  and  Wounded  Indians  find  no  Quarter — 
Horrible  Murders  of  Indian  Children— Affair  on  Table  Rock—Soldiers  themselves 
Disgusted — Governor  Currey'  s  Alarm  and  Proclamation — Take  the  Wrongs  Home — 
Human  and  Official  Power  inseparable — Governor  Currey  recovers  from  his  fit  of 
Humanity — Issues  another  Proclamation  reorganizing  the  very  men  he  had  de 
nounced — Unfairness  of  these  Measures  as  compared  with  International  Policy— False 
Representations — Extract  from  Report — Reasons  why  General  Government  is  not 
sustained — Indian  Magnanimity — Sense  of  Moral  Obligation — The  Power  of  an  Oath  60 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS.  VU 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

BATTLES    AND    MURDERa 

PAGH 

Systematic  Organization — Speculation  in  Mules  and  Ponies — Waste  and  Extrava 
gance — Pikes  and  Bostons — Disparity  of  Strength  in  the  Belligerents — Pompous 
Parade— Battles  in  the  Papers— Watching  for  a  Chance  to  fight  the  "  Red  Skins"— 
Remarkable  Victory— Defeat— Speculation— Indian  Bravery  and  Sagacity— Old 
John— His  Capture— Escape— Abduction  of  his  Daughter— Murder  of  his  Son-in- 
law— Protection  and  Promotion  of  the  Murderer— Impeachment— Trial  and  Murder 
of  the  Old  Chiefs  Son— Bravery  and  Magnanimity  of  Captain  Smith— Horror  and 
Dismay  of  the  Old  Chief— He  retires  with  his  People  to  the  Mountains— Constraint 
and  probable  Sufferings — Common  terror  of  Old  John — Indian  Fort — Bombard 
ment—Wonderful  Escape— Misgivings  and  Resignation  of  Volunteers 62 

CHAPTER    IX. 

EFFORTS  IN  BEHALF  OF  PEACE. 

Volunteers  more  Dreaded  than  Indians— Many  ashamed  of  the  part  taken— Call  for 
Peace— Position  of  the  Sentinel— Pecuniary  and  other  Interests  in  the  way  of 
Peace— Whipping  Defined— Exciting  News— Captain  Bruce  and  Company— Volun 
teers  sent  to  the  Rescue— Hand-bills— Meeting— Reverend  Doctor— Another  Gen 
tleman  with  equally  Magnanimous  Views— One  Voice  only  pleads  for  Peace— Two 
Indian  "Women  Clubbed  to  Death— Infant  killed  by  Dashing  its  head  against  a  Tree 
—Resignation  of  the  Reporters— Vengeance  of  the  Indians 73 

CHAPTER   X. 

CONTINUED  EFFORTS  FOR  PEACE. 

Sufferings  from  Cold  and  Hunger— Battles  Multiply— Chinamen  Killed  and  Robbed— 
Bute  Indians— Settlers  desire  Peace— Other  classes  opposed— Inhuman  Threats- 
Indians  begging  for  Peace  and  Protection— Letters  sent  Abroad— Suppressed— Let 
ter  to  the  Sentinel — Refused  by  the  Editor — Private  Threats  against  the  Author — 
Friends  become  Cool  and  Distant — All  Free  Sentiment  obnoxious  to  the  Ruling 
Powers — Murders  in  San  Francisco — Spirit  of  Violence  and  Aggression  one  with 
that  Exhibited  in  Kanzas,  aud  of  the  South  everywhere — Accumulating  Dangers — 
No  Apparent  means  of  Escape 76 

CHAPTER   XI. 

THE  ESCAPE. 

A  White  Ruffian — Invitation  to  a  Public  Meeting — Letters  from  the  Author  read  and 
canvassed — Attempt  to  Speak — Silenced  by  the  Chairman — Neighbors  Present — No 
one  dared  Speak  in  his  Behalf — Resolutions — Increased  Excitement — Volunteers 
threaten  Vengeance — A  View  of  the  Author's  work  suddenly  opens — Resolves  to  go 
to  Fort  Lane — Last  Evening  at  Home — Arrives  at  the  Fort — Bids  adieu  to  his  Son — 
Obtains  an.  Escort,  and  Moves  on — Parts  with  his  Guard — Continues  the  Journey — 
Arrives  in  Salem— Reflections 8W 

CHAPTER    XII. 

RUNNING  THE  GAUNTLET  WITH  PATRIOTIC  AND  CHRISTIAN  EDITORS. 

Prayers — Caution — Letter  to  Governor — Unfavorable  Reports — Popular  Shuffling — 
Names  and  Character  disagree  —  Opinions  of  the  People — Argun — Quibbles — 
Wrongs  of  Religious  Pretension — Company  of  Indians — Violated  Flag  of  Truce- 
Murdered  Family — Indian  Agent 9J 


yiii  TABLE  OF   CONTENTS 

CHAPTER    XIII. 

DEPRAVED  AND  DEPRAVING  CONDITIONS. 

PAGB 

Joel  Palmer— Expelled  from  Office— Resolutions  in  his  Favor— Parting  with  the 
Tribes— A  Pithy  Question— General  Wool— Public  Slander— Nobleness— Modocks 
— Scouting  and  Shooting— Murder  and  Capture— Soul-Murder— Footpads— Spoils — 
Leaven— Unfitness  of  Spiritual  Teachers— Report  on  Missions— White  Man's  Relig 
ion  Rejected— Why 95 

CHAPTER    XIV. 

AFFAIRS  AND  ADVENTURES  IN  CALIFORNIA. 

Passage  from  Portland— Two  Young  Indians— Indignities— Best  Blood— Arrival- 
Disturbances  in  San  Francisco— Vigilance  Committee—  Stringent  Measures— No 
Luck  -with  the  Press— Injustice— Insensibility— Rejected  by  a  Christian  Paper — 
Promised  Amendment— A  Good  Hit— Open  Sesame 102 

CHATER    XT. 

VARIOUS  OBJECTIONS  ANSWERED. 

Adieu— The  Journey— Indemnity— Aspinwall— Arrival— Delays— Common  Apathy- 
Humiliating  Concession — Popular  Sovereignty — Generous  Bravery — Indians  des 
tined  to  Perish— Great  Wrongs— Doom  Reversed— Religious  Disabilities— Spiritual 
Ministries— Natural  Correspondences— Creeds  and  Faiths 106 

CHAPTER   XYI. 

DRUGS  AND  DRUG  MEDICINES. 

Murder  of  Dr.  Whitman'— All  Ages  have  their  Martyrs — Greater  Cruelties  often  prac 
ticed  among  us — Prescriptions  of  Moses — Mission  of  Jesus  one  of  Healing — One 
sided  Representations — Testimony  of  Dr.  Gilbert — Strong  Testimonies  of  Eminent 
Physicians — Killing  an  Act  of  Conscience  and  Justice — Father  Pandozy 116 


CHAPTER    XVII. 

REMEDIAL  MEASURES  PROPOSED. 

Suitable  Reserves — Proper  Agents — Means  of  Elevation — An  Extract — Phrenological 
Signs — Family  Influences — Arts — Natural  Sciences — Golden  Rule — Drugs — Selfish 
Policy — Bad  Symptoms — Common  Wrongs 123 


CORRESPONDENCE. 

Letter  from  Eliza  W.  Farnham 134 

"       "      Frances  H.  Green  ...  . . . .  1*> 


A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS, 


CHAPTER  I. 

FIEST    SIG-HT    OF    THE    INDIANS. 

HAVING-  been  a  three  years'  resident  in  the  vicinity  of 
that  class  of  our  fellow-men,  hundreds  of  thousands  of 
whom  are  under  the  control  of  our  Government,  and  yet 
have  no  voice  in  its  administrations,  and  but  little  hold 
on  the  sympathy  of  our  people,  I  would  offer  a  few 
thoughts  upon  a  subject  which,  as  I  conceive,  has  not  here 
tofore  received  that  just  and  impartial  consideration  which 
its  importance  demands. 

In  the  Eeport,  just  published,  of  the  Secretary  of  the 
Interior,  it  is  declared  that  the  object  of  the  Government 
throughout  has  been  "to  do  ample  justice  to  the  Indians, 
and  to  leave  no  room  for  complaint  that  they  have  been 
overreached  by  the  White  Man."  The  simple  announce 
ment  of  this  object  commends  itself  to  every  reflecting 
and  benevolent  mind ;  and  yet  it  is  to  be  lamented  that 
many  of  our  people,  instead  of  realizing  its  justice,  do  so 
much  to  thwart  its  purpose. 

With  a  view  of  awakening  a  truer  appreciation  of  the 
Indians'  rights,  and  a  more  thorough  co-operation  in  the 
views  of  the  Government  for  securing  them,  I  would  now 
lay  before  my  fellow-citizens  such  facts  as  have  come  be 
fore  me,  which,  with  their  results,  have  an  important 
bearing  on  these  great  questions.  And  I  engage  in  this 
work  the  more  earnestly,  for  the  reason,  that,  while  every 
other  class  of  suffering  humanity  has  its  specific  organiza 
tions  for  relief,  we  hear  of  nothing  adequate  to  the  necessi- 

1* 


10  A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS. 

ties  of  that  Eace,  which,  from  the  very  moment  the  "White 
Man  set  his  foot  upon  our  shores,  has  been  constantly  the 
subject  of  monopoly  and  wrong,  in  every  shape  which  the 
overbearing  and  all-engrossing  spirit  of  our  people  could 
suggest  or  impose. 

In  the  Report  already  alluded  to,  as  well  as  in  the  excel 
lent  one  of  the  Indian  Department,  the  grievous  injustice 
and  abuse  to  which  the  tribes  are  subject,  are  spoken  of  in 
strong  and  truthful  language.  And  yet,  it  must  be  ob 
served,  that  no  general  statement,  however  correct  or  im 
pressive  it  may  be,  can  present  so  graphic  a  picture  of  the 
reality  as  a  detail  of  facts.  I  propose,  therefore,  to  cor 
roborate  the  statements  in  the  above-mentioned  Reports, 
by  presenting  to  the  public,  so  far  as  memory  serves,  a 
personal  narrative  of  what  I  saw,  and  heard,  and  thought, 
in  reference  to  this  matter,  during  my  sojourn  in  Oregon 
Territory. 

I  left  Illinois  in  March,  1853,  en  route,  across  the  plains, 
for  Oregon ;  and,  like  many  others,  anticipated  the  pleasure 
of  seeing  Humanity  in  its  various  phases  of  savage,  bar 
baric,  and  semi-civilized  life. 

We  encamped  at  Havensville,  on  the  Missouri,  and 
waited  several  days,  in  order  that  the  grass  might  afford 
sufficient  feed  before  we  ventured  beyond  the  possibility 
of  purchase.  It  was  here  that  we  had  our  first  sight  of 
the  Indians;  and  truly  our  hearts  sickened  at  the  view. 
There  were  men  and  women,  with  naturally  fine  forms, 
and  minds  capable  of  development,  yet  evidently  besotted, 
and  sunk  below  their  original  barbarism.  Tobacco  and 
whisky,  and  the  accumulation  of  civilized  vices,  had  done 
their  work.  Some  of  them  were  begging  for  bread,  appar 
ently  in  great  destitution ;  and  surely  it  would  be  but  a 
poor  return  for  the  lands  of  which  we  have  deprived  them, 
to  devise,  and  put  in  operation,  some  means  by  which 
these  poor  outcasts  may  be  saved  from  beggary  and  utter 
starvation. 

At  Fort  Laramy,  and  for  some  miles  around,  we  saw 
several  hundreds  of  the  Sioux  tribe.  They  appeared  to  be 
a  fine  people ;  they  were  clad  in  dressed  skins,  profusely 
decorated  with  feathers,  beads,  and  paint  and  most  of 


A   PLEA  FOE  THE  INDIANS.  11 

them  mounted  on  fair  and  well-fed  ponies.  They  also  ap 
peared  clean  in  their  persons  and  dress ;  and  the  principal 
article  they  begged  of  the  emigrants  was  soap.  Here  it 
may  be  suggested,  that  an  article  so  conducive  to  cleanli 
ness  and  self-respect,  should  be  liberally  supplied  as  a  part 
of  their  annuity.  From  many  things  that  I  saw  of  them,  I 
could  not  resist  the  impression  that  a  people  so  highly  en 
dowed  with  sublimity  and  ideality — a  sense  of  the  grand 
and  beautiful- — were  naturally  aspirants  for  refinement  and 
the  arts.  If  a  portion  of  the  money  now  spent  in  building 
forts,  and  supporting  men  and  munitions  of  war,  could  be 
laid  out  in  the  means  of  civilization,  we  should  soon  need 
no  warlike  defenses  to  protect  ourselves  against  them.  Let 
them  have  proper  articles  of  clothing,  dress-makers  and 
tailors,  artistic  musicians  and  painters,  horticulturists  and 
farmers — in  short,  every  thing  of  the  useful  and  agree 
able,  which  they  are  now  prepared  to  accept  from  civilized 
life ;  and  they  would,  by  the  upward  tendency  of  human 
nature  itself,  inevitably  be  attracted  to  higher  and  truer 
conditions.  In  order  to  preserve  and  maintain  these,  they 
would  soon  have  local  homes,  into  which  would  ultimately 
flow  all  the  varied  currents  of  refinement  and  civilization. 
These  means  would  be  more  economical  to  Government, 
and  vastly  more  persuasive  arguments  in  favor  of  Chris 
tianity  and  good  citizenship,  than  ever  yet  spoke  to  them 
either  from  bowie-knife,  rifle,  or  patent  revolver.  They 
should,  in  fact,  be  protected  from  the  worse  than  savage 
borderers,  who  practice  the  arts  of  civilization  only  to  ex 
hibit  and  extend  its  vices,  its  monopoly,  and  its  crimes. 

A  day's  journey  from  Fort  Laramie  we  met  a  band  of 
Indians,  apparently  of  another  tribe,  not  as  good-looking 
as  the  last,  but,  nevertheless,  quite  passable  in  their  ap 
pearance.  Their  pack-horses  were  led  by  women,  and 
were  attached  to  a  kind  of  sled,  of  very  simple  structure, 
but  admirably  adapted  to  a  rough  country,  where  there 
are  no  roads.  It  was  formed  of  two  poles  of  eighteen  or, 
perhaps,  twenty  feet  long,  with  a  cross-piece  so  arranged 
as  to  resemble  the  letter  A.  The  horse  is  attached  inside 
the  narrow  end,  with  a  breast-strap  and  back-band.  The 
children,  and  the  principal  part  of  the  load?  are  fastened 


12  A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS. 

to  the  cross-piece,  two  or  three  feet  back  of  the  horse. 
The  poles,  which  are  composed  of  light,  tough,  and 
springy  materials,  being  very  long  and  wide,  opening 
gradually  from  the  pointed  fore  end,  to  a  wide  angle  in  the 
rear,  slide  over  the  chapparel*  and  hillocks,  over  holes  and 
down  steep  precipices,  without  inconvenience  to  the  rider 
or  the  load. 

Soon  after,  we  passed  a  large  encampment  of  the  same 
tribe,  where  a  number  of  dogs,  with  poles  proportioned  to 
the  size  of  the  animal,  were  employed  in  hauling  water 
from  a  distant  spring.  These  Indians  made  no  offer  either 
to  trade  or  beg,  and  seemed  hardly  to  notice  our  numerous 
train  of  wagons  and  stock,  although  we  passed  close  by 
their  camp. 

A  disastrous  occurrence  took  place  soon  after  we  passed 
by  this  spot.  It  has  already  been  brought  before  the  pub 
lic  ;  but  as  it  illustrates  how  difficulties  generally  occur  be 
tween  the  races,  and,  at  the  same  time,  how  easily  they 
might  be  avoided,  if  our  people,  especially  Government 
Agents,  were  more  fully  imbued  with  the  spirit  of  justice 
and  magnanimity,  I  will,  in  this  connection,  repeat  the 
account. 

A  company  of  emigrants  having  a  sick  cow,  which  was 
unable  to  travel  further,  abandoned  the  poor  animal,  and 
left  her  by  the  way-side.  The  Indians,  seeing  she  was 
given  up,  killed  her  for  their  own  use.  The  emigrants, 
hearing  of  this,  reported  at  Fort  Laramie  that  the  Indians 
had  stolen  and  killed  some  of  their  cattle,  upon  which,  an 
officer,  with  a  detachment  of  thirty  men,  was  sent  to  de 
mand  the  thief.  The  Indians — knowing-the  certainty  and 
severity  of  impending  punishment,  for  there  was  the  hide, 
and  even  the  beef,  in  visible  possession — refused,  or  hesi 
tated  to  give  up  any  of  their  number  as  the  criminal ;  for 
they  well  knew  that  nothing  which  they  could  plead 
would  have  the  least  weight  with  their  accusers. 

The  military  order  was  peremptorily  insisted  on ;  and  to 
enforce  obedience,  a  volley  was  fired  over  their  camp; 
and,  either  by  design  or  accident,  the  chief  fell  dead  in 
their  midst.  Nothing  was  more  natural  than  that  the  In- 

*  Cbapparel  is  the  common  term  for  brush  or  shrubbery. 


A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS.  13 

dians  should,  in  their  turn,  attack  the  assailants.  Every 
principle  of  right  or  honor  recognized  among  them  de 
manded  this  ;  and  twenty-eight  of  the  white  men  fell 
dead  beneath  the  force  of  their  justly-excited  resent 
ment. 

In  consequence  of  this  the  Indians  were  charged  with 
massacre,  as  well  as  robbery.  "War  was  declared,  or  sup 
posed  to  exist ;  and  the  following  year  hundreds  of  thou 
sands  were  expended  in  a  campaign  against  them,  although 
they  had,  in  the  interim,  done  all  they  could  to  express 
their  desire  for  peace  and  friendship.  General  Harney, 
with  a  glittering  array  of  armed  men;  both  horse  and 
foot,  marched  on  to  the  Plains,  and  was  met  by  the  Chief, 
who  nobly  came  forward  in  advance,  and  plead  with  the 
officer  for  peace  and  justice,  in  behalf  of  his  people. 

The  General  held  him  in  parley,  while,  in  accordance 
with  a  preconcerted  arrangement,  the  Dragoons,  by  a  cir 
cuitous  route,  got  in  the  rear  of  the  Indians,  and,  at  the 
word  of  command,  opened  a  promiscuous  slaughter  of  these 
comparatively  defenseless  people.  Is  not  such  a  procedure 
as  this  an  outrage  against  every  principle  of  humanity  and 
justice?  Is  there  any  thing,  in  all  the  usages  and  laws  of 
war,  recognized  among  civilized  Nations,  that  could  save 
that  officer,  and  all  who  willingly  assisted  in  the  work, 
from  the  charge,  and  from  the  guilt,  of  wholesale  murder  ? 
And  yet,  acts  like  this,  involving  a  greater  or  less  amount 
of  wrong,  are  of  almost  daily  occurrence,  as  I  shall  attempt 
to  show.  And  yet,  how  easily  all  this  horrible  waste  of 
life  and  treasure  might  have  been  avoided,  if  the  represent 
atives  of  our  People  and  Government  had  pursued  a  dif 
ferent  course.  If  the  Emigrants  had  considered  the  de 
struction  which  is  continually  being  made  of  the  Buffalo 
and  other  game,  and  the  scarcity  and  often  suffering  to 
which  the  Indians  are  often  subject  for  want  of  food,  they 
would  have  felt  no  reason  for  complaint,  which  came  with 
a  very  ill  grace  under  the  circumstances.  The  cow  was 
made  capital  only  when  it  was  to  be  turned  against  the 
outlawed  Race,  which  we  are  steadily  seeking  to  supplant 
and  destroy.  Or  if  the  officer,  instead  of  demanding  an 
unconditional  surrender,  had  gone,  in  the  spirit  of  kind- 


14  A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS. 

ness,  to  invite  an  impartial  investigation,  there  would  have 
been  no  injustice  and  no  bloodshed. 

Can  we,  who  claim  the  rights  of  Habeas  Corpus  and  trial 
by  our  peers,  set  aside  with  impunity,  observances  which 
are  sacred  among  the  rudest  tribes,  and  with  the  false  plea 
of  martial  justice,  which  we  have  no  right  to  assume,  ac 
tually  commit  nameless  atrocities,  in  direct  violation  of  a 
flag  of  truce,  or  of  an  accepted  parley  ?  Shall  we  ever  be 
able  to  lead  our  Neighbors  out  of  their  barbaric  conditions 
by  sinking  ourselves  below  the  pale  of  ordinary  savageism  ? 
No ;  we  can  never  extend  civilization  but  by  making  it 
attractive,  and  worthy  of  acceptance.  We  must  exhibit 
a  character  worthy  of  respect,  before  we  can  so  far  gain 
the  confidence  of  the  Eed  Man,  as  to  be  able  to  do  him 
good.  We  must  draw  him  outward ;  we  must  attract  him 
upward;  we  must  give  him  something  better  than  his  own 
barbarism,  or  we  can  never  bring  him  into  higher  con 
ditions. 

Our  military  can  never  win  honorable  laurels  in  any 
contest  with  the  Indians  ;  for  the  world  regards  such  war 
fare  as  they  would  a  deadly  strife  between  a  giant  and  a 
dwarf.  The  strength  is  all  on  one  side.  But  in  the  case 
mentioned,  our  action  could  not  be  justified  by  even  the 
pretense  of  war.  It  was  a  deliberate  massacre  of  supplicat 
ing  dependants — murder  in  its  most  revolting  and  aggra 
vated  form. 


CHAPTER  II. 

CONTINUED    WBONGS. 

AMONG  the  thousands  who  cross  the  Plains,  there  are 
many  who  have  never  been  refined  by  either  'mental  or 
moral  culture.  The  sum  total  of  their  religious  and  polit 
ical  faith  consists  in  Squatter  Sovereignty — the  right  to  do 
as  they  choose,  regardless  of  all  but  selfish  interests. 
"When  such  as  these  get  beyond  the  range  of  Law  and 
Civilization,  a  slight  cause  often  makes  them  reckless  and 
abusive  ;  and  many  are  the  cases  of  violence  and  murder, 
of  which  the  world  never  hears ;  and  as  the  Authorities  at 
the  Forts  exercise  neither  civil  nor  military  jurisdiction 
over  the  Emigrants,  any  outrage  may  be  committed  with 
comparative  impunity. 

But  it  is  the  Indians  who  are  generally  their  most  nu 
merous  victims.  At  first  they  find  more  excitement  in 
shooting  bears  and  buffaloes,  than  they  did  in  the  States  in 
killing  rabbits  and  deer.  They  grow  ambitious,  and  begin 
to  think  it  would  be  a  great  achievement  to  kill  an  Indian ; 
and,  as  most  of  them  are  armed  with  rifles  and  revolvers, 
the  desire  becomes  strong  to  slay  one  of  those  whom  their 
own  savageness  has  converted  into  an  enemy.  This  desire 
is  not  only  felt ;  but  as  the  travelers  proceed  further  and 
further  into  the  interior,  it  finds  open  and  frequent  expres 
sion  ;  and  men  are  heard  to  declare  their  determination  to 
shoot  the  first  Indian  they  see.  Almost  daily,  from  leaving 
Fort  Laramie,  to  arrival  in  Oregon,  did  I  have  occasion 
to  remonstrate  with  some  who  entertain  these  unworthy 
views.  So  many  Indians  had  been  thus  destroyed  by  pre 
vious  emigration,  that  we  saw  very  few  on  the  route ;  those 
who  did  visit  us  were  very  shy,  and  fearful  of  approach. 
I  could  not  regard  them  as  enemies,  and  often,  with  pleas- 


16  A  PLEA  FOB  THE  INDIANS. 

me,  I  watched  them  as  they  passed  from  tent  to  tent,  and 
saw  the  grateful  emotions  play  over  their  countenance,  as 
one  or  another  of  the  Emigrants  would  offer  a  few  crackers, 
a  piece  of  bread,  or  even  a  friendly  smile.  The  prompt 
ness  with  which  they  reciprocated  every  overture  of  kind 
ness,  made  an  indelible  impression  on  my  mind,  that  they 
richly  deserve  the  sympathy  and  protection  of  our  People 
.and  Government.  I  felt  assured  that  if  some  efficient 
means  were  adopted,  to  restrain  the  evil-disposed  among 
us,  it  would  be  quite  easy,  and  of  vast  advantage,  to  es 
tablish  terms  of  peaceful  intercourse  with  all  the  tribes 
along  the  whole  route  to  the  Pacific.  A  small  annuity  to 
the  different  tribes,  of  clothing  and  implements  adapted  to 
their  circumstances,  would  be  but  a  fair  acknowledgment 
for  passing  through  their  lands,  and  the  use  of  their  game, 
which  we  could  well  afford,  and  ought,  in  all  honesty,  to 
proffer  them.  And  these  pacific  measures  would  also  be 
the  truest  economy.  By  a  mutual  good  understanding, 
we  could  dispense  with  the  fatigue  of  constant  watching, 
while,  at  the  same  time,  we  should  be  secured  from  the 
losses  so  often  incurred  by  the  Emigrants,  and  from  those 
cruel  retaliations,  which  now  so  frequently  are  permitted 
to  fall  on  the  innocent.  It  would  also  be  an  initiatory 
step  toward  the  civilization  of  all  the  Indians  in  our  wide 
domain.  Thus  we,  as  a  Nation,  have  the  strongest  pos 
sible  motives,  both  of  honor  and  interest,  not  only  to  love 
mercy,  but  to  do  justice  by  this  long-abused  people. 

We  took  the  route  for  Eogue  Biver  Yalley,  Southern 
Oregon,  leaving  the  Humboldt  eighty  miles  above  the  sink. 
After  crossing  the  Sierra  Nevada  Mountains,  we  passed  by 
a  lake  of  considerable  size,  and  pitched  our  tents  upon  its 
eastern  shore.  Some  of  the  company  discovered  among 
the  rushes  near  the  margin,  an  Indian  canoe,  containing 
long  spears,  headed  with  bone,  and  several  other  primitive 
implements  for  catching  fish,  with  quite  a  pile  of  the  game 
itself,  freshly  caught.  The  poor  fishermen,  alarmed  at  our 
approach,  had  concealed  themselves.  The  persons  who 
made  the  discovery,  took  all  the  fish ;  and  so  far  from 
leaving  an  equivalent,  they  were  only,  by  considerable  re 
monstrance,  hindered  from  destroying  the  boat  and  imple- 


A  PLEA  FOR  THE   INDIANS.  17 

ments,  which  would  have  been  an  incalculable  loss  to  the 
tribe,  as,  with  their  rude  instruments,  it  must  have  been 
an  immense  labor  to  make  them  ;  and  want  and  starvation 
might  have  ensued,  before  they  could  have  been  supplied 
with  others. 

Happy  should  I  be,  if  the  memory  of  these  scenes,  and 
of  that  journey,  did  not  remind  me  of  so  many  circum 
stances  which "  I  would  rather  forget  than  repeat.  But 
since  whatever  is  done  by  the  Indians,  though  in  self-de 
fense,  is  published  all  over  the  land,  as  savage  barbarity, 
for  which  nothing  short  of  extermination  is  recommended 
and  sought,  it  is  but  common  justice  to  state  a  few  things 
which  have  been  done  against  them  by  those  who  claim  to 
be  so  much  their  superiors. 

The  majority  of  the  first  Emigrations  to  Oregon  were 
from  Missouri,  and  among  them  it  was  customary  to  speak 
of  the  Indian  man  as  a  Buck ;  of  the  woman  as  a  Squaw ; 
until  at  length,  in  the  general  acceptance  of  these  terms, 
they  ceased  to  recognize  the  rights  of  Humanity  in  those  to 
whom  they  were  so  applied.  By  a  very  natural  and  easy 
tiansition,  from  being  spoken  of  as  brutes,  they  came  to 
be  thought  of  as  game  to  be  shot,  or  as  vermin  to  be  de 
stroyed.  This  shows  the  force  of  association,  and  the 
wrong  of  speaking  in  derogatory  terms  of  those  we  regard 
as  our  inferiors.  The  same  principle,  in  another  direction, 
is  illustrated  by  the  liberality  with  which  we  bestow  titles 
of  office  and  dignity — even  upon  those  to  whom  they  do 
not  belong.  Who  of  us  has  not  addressed  his  friend  as 
Squire,  or  Captain,  or  Colonel,  simply  because  we  would 
impress  upon  others  a  feeling  of  respect  for  the  person — 
showing  that,  though  not  filling  the  office,  he  is  considered 
worthy  of  the  honor ;  and  thus  men  rise  in  public  esteem. 
But,  on  the  other  hand,  let  a  man  be  denounced  by  the 
popular  voice  as  a  thief,  and  he  will  be  regarded  as  such 
whether  he  is  or  not.  Thus  the  poor  Indian,  by  being 
spoken  of  as  a  brute,  is  cast  beyond  the  pale  of  a  common 
humanity — where  the  killing  of  him  ceases  to  be  murder, 
and  no  atrocity  is  considered  cruel  or  unjust. 

A  band  of  Emigrants,  who  went  over  the  same  route 
five  or  six  weeks  alter  us,  were  attended  by  a  company  of 


18  A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS. 

Volunteers,  sent  by  public  expense  from  Oregon  to  aid  and 
protect  them  on  the  way  out.  Of  course  these  men  must 
show  their  valor.  On  coming  to  the  Lakes,  an  Indian 
man,  with  two  women,  was  discovered  catching  fish  ;  and 
forthwith  preparation  was  made  for  an  attack.  Eifles  were 
leveled ;  but  the  Indian,  with  only  a  bow  and  arrow,  nobly 
stood  his  ground  until  he  fell,  riddled  through  and  through 
by  the  bullets  of  his  assailants.  The  terrified  females  were 
caught,  and  made  to  witness  the  cutting  and  slashing  of 
the  gory  body  of  their  murdered  husband,  father,  son,  or 
brother,  by  those  who  thus  added  brutal  insult  to  their 
previous  crime. 

The  above  account  was  received  from  several  different 
persons,  in  the  same  company ;  and  they  also  informed  me 
that  a  number  of  Traders  from  California,  who  had  located 
themselves  during  the  summer  on  the  Humboldt,  for  the 
purpose  of  buying  lame  cattle  and  trading  with  the 
Emigrants,  when  they  were  ready  to  return,  deliberately 
killed  several  Indians,  and  took  possession  of  their  horses. 
On  a  Sabbath  day,  during  which  the  travelers  camped  near 
this  trading-post,  they  heard  the  firing  of  guns,  and  learned 
that  a  company  of  seven  Indians  were  shot  by  the  Traders 
as  they  were  riding  past,  and  the  horses  of  the  murdered 
men  added  to  their  own  stock. 

I  would  here  suggest  that  it  is  the  Indians  whom  our 
Government  should  be  most  solicitous  to  protect,  not  merely 
from  a  principle  of  magnanimity  and  justice  toward  them 
as  the  suffering  and  weaker  Eace,  but  also  as  a  matter  of 
self-interest  and  self-protection.  So  long  as  the  Eed  man 
lives,  every  murdered  Indian  will  be  avenged  ;  or,  by  all 
the  power  that  is  in  him,  he  will  ever  seek  to  do  this.  It 
is  not  only  a  conventional  obligation,  but  a  part  of  his  re 
ligion.  Every  succeeding  Emigrant  train  will  be  watched 
with  more  than  Argus  eyes ;  and  unsuspecting,  and  often 
innocent  victims,  will  perish  to  pay  the  penalty.  The  pub 
lic  mind  has  long  labored  under  a  great  mistake  in  suppos 
ing  that  the  Indian  is  actuated  chiefly  by  animal  instinct, 
or  that  he  does  not  possess,  in  a  high  degree,  those  faculties 
from  which  arise  emotions  of  gratitude,  a  sense  of  right, 
and  a  love  of  justice.  Nothing  is  more  contemptible  in 


A  PLEA  FOB  THE  INDIANS.  19 

the  mind  of  an  Indian  than  cowardly  meanness,  either 
toward  an  Enemy  or  Friend.  Hence  their  revenge  is  a 
matter  of  conscience.  They  believe,  as  Moses  taught,  "  Life 
for  life  ;"  "  Blood  for  blood  ;"  and  in  the  way  of  this,  peril 
is  no  hinderance,  and  death  has  no  terror.  We  talk  of 
Martyr  courage,  and  Christian  triumphs ;  but  if  the 
heroic  sacrifices  and  noble  deeds  performed  by  Indians  in 
defense  of  principle,  were  duly  understood  and  chronicled, 
we  should  have  a  large  addition  to  the  calendar  of  Saints 
and  faithful  men,  who  have  been  an  honor  to  the  species. 
I  do  not  make  this  assertion  solely  on  the  strength  of  my 
own  observation,  but  it  is  confirmed  by  Traders  and  gentle 
men  intimately  acquainted  with  Indian  character. 

In  conversation  with  that  renowned  and  venerable  man, 
Dr.  McLaughlin,  who  was  for  more  than  half  a  century  an 
Indian  Trader,  and  for  twenty -two  years  Superintendent 
of  the  Hudson  Bay  Fur  Company,  he  assured  me  that  the 
Indians  have  a  high  sense  of  justice.  They  never  allow, 
among  themselves,  advantage  to  be  taken  of  the  weaker 
party.  Though  jealous  of  their  rights,  they  will  never  in 
fringe  on  treaty  stipulations,  if  constructed  on  principles 
of  equity,  and  honorably  observed  by  others.  He  further 
declared  that,  during  all  the  long  time  he  had  been  con 
nected  with  them,  although  he,  and  those  under  him,  had 
traded  to  the  amount  of  many  millions,  dealing  with  all 
the  tribes,  from  the  head  waters  of  the  Columbia  and  its 
tributaries,  to  the  Pacific,  and  the  intermediate  country  to 
the  head  of  the  Sacramento  Kiver,  they  had  no  wars,  nor 
even  any  serious  difficulty,  and  consequently  no  occasion 
for  a  standing  army. 

The  testimony  of  Captain  Smith,  of  Fort  Lane,  who 
was  surrounded  by  Indians,  and  intimately  acquainted 
with  the  origin  and  progress  of  the  late  Oregon  war,  is 
equally  strong.  In  an  interview  with  him,  in  company 
with  Dr.  Ambrose,  during  the  early  part  of  the  difficulties, 
they  united  in  the  remark,  that  if  there  were  any  Christians 
in  Eogue  Kiver  Valley,  they  were  to  be  found  among  the 
Indians. 

The  impolicy  of  protecting  one  Eace  and  punishing 
the  other,  is  to  be  seen  in  the  experience  of  nearly  every 


20  A  PLEA  FOR  THE    INDIANS. 

campaign  that  is  set  on  foot  against  the  Indians.  The 
substance  of  the  following  I  have  gathered  from  the  late 
papers ;  and  as  it  is  a  specimen  of  the  generality  of  Indian 
wars,  I  will  again  call  it  up  to  view.  The  Mail  Carrier 
from  Fort  ^Laramie  was  shot,  as  was  supposed  by  an  In 
dian.  No  sooner  had  the  news  reached  the  Fort,  than  the 
soldiers  were  on  their  horses,  and  in  hot  pursuit.  They 
overtook  a  party  of  Indians,  killed  eleven,  captured  twenty 
of  their  horses,  burned  their  camp,  and  then  returned 
to  the  Fort.  The  same  night,  the  Indians  who  had  es 
caped,  surprised  a  company  of  travelers,  killed  the  men, 
took  a  white  woman  prisoner,  and  captured  a  number  of 
animals,  with  a  considerable  property.  Now  who  does  not 
see  that  it  is  time  to  put  a  stop  to  these  suicidal  proceed 
ings  ;  for  so  long  as  the  Indians  are  exposed  to  such  in 
justice,  these,  and  similar  inflictions,  will  inevitably  visit 
our  people.  »  Investigation  and  justice  would  have  insured 
protection  to  the  poor  travelers ;  and  until  we  extend  to 
the  Indians  the  common  rights  of  humanity,  we  have  no 
reason  to  expect  them  for  ourselves. 


CHAPTER   III. 

OPENING    OF    WAR. 

I  WILL  now  proceed  with  the  narrative  of  events,  as  they 
fell  under  my  own  observation,  or  came  to  my  knowledge 
through  the  testimony  of  others.  Our  Train  arrived  in 
Eogue  Kiver  Yalley,  28th  of  September,  1853,  having  been 
something  more  than  six  months  on  our  journey.  Only 
the  upper,  or  southern  part  of  this  valley  was  occupied  by 
a  very  sparse  settlement  of  "Whites,  the  Indians  having 
collected  on  the  lower  but  richer  part.  It  is  the  main 
thoroughfare  between  the  "Willamette  and  Sacramento 
Valleys,  about  two  hundred  miles  from  each,  and  eighty 
miles  from  Crescent  City,  on  the  coast,  to  which  it  is  ac 
cessible  only  by  pack  mules.  Some  of  the  gulshes*  that 
open  into  it,  are  rich  in  gold.  It  has  numerous  mountain 
streams,  and  a  considerable  proportion  of  fertile  land.  Its 
width  varies  from  one  to  several  miles.  The  surrounding 
mountains  are  lofty ;  and  some  of  them  are  capped  with 
snow  most  of  the  year.  There  is  a  plenty  of  timber  and 
water-power,  with  a  boundless  range  of  pasturage  for  sheep 
and  cattle.  The  scenery  is  varied  and  beautiful  beyond 
description.  The  climate  of  this  region  is  probably  the 
most  pure  and  bracing  that  can  be  found  in  any  part  of 
the  Pacific,  being  considerably  elevated  above  the  ocean, 
and  far  removed  from  the  inundated  lands  of  the  Colum 
bia  and  Sacramento  and  their  tributary  streams.  All 
.these  make  it  a  desirable  location  for  settlement. 

"When  first  visited,  in  1849  and  1850,  it  was  found  oc 
cupied  by  numerous  small  bands  of  Indians,  united  under 
one  general  Confederacy.  These  tribes  were  said  to  pos- 
intellect  and  physical  strength  equal,  if  not  superior,  to 

*  A  ravine,  or  mountain  gap,  ia  called  a  GukTi. 


22  A  PLEA  FOE  THE  INDIAN'S. 

any  on  the  continent.  They  had  abundance  of  food,  in  a 
great  variety  of  berries  and  nutritious  roots,  which  are 
found  indigenous,  on  all  the  bottom  lands,  and  are  propa 
gated  without  culture ;  and  to  these  were  added  the 
swarms  of  mountain  trout  and  salmon  which,  in  some 
seasons,  abound  in  almost  every  creek. 

o.t  is  impossible  to  describe  the  joyful  sensations  of  our 
company,  on  entering  this  valley.  We  had  been  traveling 
months  over  mountain  and  desert.  Our  eyes  had  been 
strained  upon  objects  varied  by  the  novel,  the  grand,  and 
sometimes  by  the  most  wild  and  awful  aspects  that  nature 
could  present;  when  suddenly,  we  beheld  an  inclosed 
field,  with  shocks  of  grain,  a  house  surrounded  by  gardens, 
people,  and  appurtenances  of  civilization.  Then  it  was 
that  the  long-absented  thoughts  of  home  and  rest,  rushed 
over  us ;  and  as  we  looked  on  this  lovely  valley,  we  hoped 
for  an  end  to  the  toils  and  perils  of  our  long  and  weari 
some  journey.  It  was  a  picture  varied  with  shadow  and 
sunshine,  lofty  mountains  and  little  hills,  meadows,  groves, 
and  silvery  streams,  altogether  more  beautiful  than  a  painter 
could  portray,  or  even  imagine. 

But  we  were  soon  apprised  of  the  existence  of  war  with 
the  Indians,  and  the  death  of  several  men,  who  had  arrived 
in  the  Valley  about  two  weeks  previous.  The  Settlers 
were  all  crowded  in  three  or  four  Forts,  hastily  put  up  for 
protection.  They  had  captured  a  number  of  women  and 
children  ;  and,  aided  by  the  first  arrived  Emigrants,  were 
guarding  them  in  a  Fort,  at  the  upper  end  of  the  Yalley. 
They  had  kept  them  about  ten  days,  when  the  husbands 
and  fathers  took  the  following  plan  to  accomplish  the  de 
sired  liberation  of  their  wives  and'  children.  Twenty-five 
or  thirty  active  Indians  traveled  thirty  or  forty  miles  from. 
below,  keeping  themselves  out  of  sight  of  the  Settlers. 
One  morning,  just  at  daybreak,  when  the  men  in  the  up 
per  Fort  had  no  thought  of  Indians  being  near,  they  were* 
aroused  by  the  blazing  of  stacks ;  and  before  they  had 
time  to  rally  to  the  rescue,  the  guardsmen  were  killed,  and 
all  the  Indians,  including  their  prisoners,  were  gone.  To 
add  to  their  chagrin,  pursuit  was  impossible,  for  the  Enemy 
had  carried  off  all  their  animals. 


A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS.  23 

A  few  days  after  our  arrival,  the  Settlers,  finding  the 
war  to  be  a  losing  business,  made  a  treaty  of  peace,  agree 
ing  that  there  should  be  a  reserve  of  land,  within  which 
the  Indians  should  not  be  molested,  and  that  all  private 
grievances  should  be  settled  equally  by  the  Authorities, 
and  not  by  private  revenge.  The  Settlers,  as  well  as  the 
new  Emigrants,  then  went  to  work  in  good  earnest. 
Farms  were  laid  out,  houses  and  mills  raised,  and  fresh 
mines  discovered.  All  might  have  been  prosperous  and 
happy ;  but,  unfortunately,  a  great  part  of  the  population 
consisted  of  men  from  Missouri,  and  other  parts  where  the 
great  truths  which  our  Fathers  established,  as  the  basis  of 
Government,  are  not  recognized.  They  claimed  rights  for 
themselves  which  they  refused  to  others ;  for  they  denied 
to  the  poor  Indian  the  common  prerogative,  peaceful  en 
joyment  of ' l  life,  liberty,  and  the  pursuit  of  happiness." 
Hence  treaties  were  disregarded ;  and  peace  became  utterly 
impossible,  as  it  always  is,  and  must  be,  whenever  the 
strong  man  removes  the  landmark  of  his  weaker  neighbor, 
and  monopolizes  according  to  his  own  pleasure.  This 
fundamental  principle  being  cast  aside,  there  was  no 
longer  any  restraining  power ;  and  supreme  selfishness  be 
came  the  rule,  and  a  worse  than  naked  brute  force  the  ac 
cepted  and  only  law  of  the  land. 

There  were  scores  of  men,  assuming  the  prerogatives  of 
sovereigns,  who  could  not  read,  and  yet  made  and  ex 
ecuted  laws,  and  whose  only  idea  of  the  Constitution  of  the 
country  is,  that  it  was  made  to  keep  down  the  "  Niggers." 
Of  course  they  understood  it  to  have  the  same  bearing  upon 
Indians,  and  all  others  except  "  white  male  American  cit 
izens." 

This  cruel  and  fatal  error  was  strengthened,  rather  than 
corrected,  by  .the  aspirants  for  office ;  and  especially  was 
this  the  case  with  the  candidate  for  Representative  at 
Washington.  Indians  were  mentioned  frequently  in  their 
speeches,  but  always  in  such  a  manner  as  to  convey  the 
impression  that  it  was  meritorious  to  destroy  them ;  and 
one  of  the  Candidates  based  his  claims  to  the  public  suf 
frage  on  his  superior  tact  or  facility  for  securing  the  public 
funds  as  indemnity  for  Indian  wars. 


24  A  PLEA  FOE  THE  INDIANS. 

I  have  heard  several  of  these  public  addresses ;  but  in 
none  of  them  was  there  one  word  calculated  to  awaken 
feelings  of  compassion,  or  a  sense  of  humanity  and  justice 
toward  that  unfortunate  Race,  whose  homes  had  been 
usurped,  or  the  necessity  of  honor  and  truth  in  the  ob 
servance  of  treaties.  The  great  theme  of  Dollars — Dollars 
— Dollars !  and  the  facility  with  which  they  should  be 
handed  over  to  meet  the  claims  of  the  war,*was  the  absorb 
ing  topic. 

It  is  well  known  that  the  prospect  of  great  gain  had  at 
tracted  the  people  to  those  parts ;  and  as  Indian  wars 
promised  a  ready  way  to  obtain  it,  we  may  easily  see  how, 
in  this  case,  the  love  of  money  became  the  root  of  all  evil, 
and  how  little  effort  there  would  be  to  avoid  that  which 
those  high  in  position  seemed  to  sanction.  The  peculiar 
nature  of  the  climate,  and  the  employment  of  the  mining 
companies,  had  also  considerable  influence  in  bringing 
about  hostilities.  Owing  to  a  scarcity  of  water  during  sev 
eral  months  of  the  year,  the  Miners  have  no  work.  Their 
food,  meanwhile,  consists,  principally  of  fine  bread  and 
beef;  and  they  generally  use  abundance  of  tobacco  and 
whisky.  Thus  the  quality  of  the  food,  and  the  poisons, 
in  connection  with  a  stimulating  atmosphere,  excite  their 
baser  passions ;  and,  in  the  absence  of  moral  restraint  and 
civil  law,  they  seek  indulgence  by  outrages  on  the  persons 
of  defenseless  Indians.  I  forbear  the  recital  of  horrors. 
Any  American  father  or  mother  can  easily  imagine  what 
would  be  the  fate  of  their  daughters  if,  unprotected  and 
isolated,  in  valleys  and  ravines,  surrounded  by  hosts  of 
men  of  the  class  and  under  the  circumstances  above  de 
scribed.  It  is  no  palliation  to  say,  that  the  females  are 
willing  victims ;  for  it  is  notorious  that  their  fathers  and 
brothers  are  often  shot  in  order  to  gain  forcible  possession. 
We  should  realize  the  magnitude  of  this  wrong,  if  we  con 
sider  what  execration  and  punishment  we  inflict  upon  an 
other  Eace  for  such  violations  of  our  own. 

There  were  also  men  vile  enough  to  take  advantage  of 
the  necessities  of  the  Indians,  and  tempt  them  to  trade  off 
their  daughters  for  revolvers,  rifles,  and  ammunition.  And 
this  shameful  traffic  was  carried  to  such  an  extent,  that 


A  PLEA  FOR  THE   INDIANS.  25 

when  open  war  commenced,  the  common  lament  was 
everywhere  heard,  that  there  were  scarcely  any  arms  in  the 
Valley,  for  the  Indians  had  them  all.  Jacksonville  was 
left  nearly  unprotected. 

The  consequence  of  this  amalgamation  of  drunkenness, 
filth,  and  vice,  became  'manifest  in  disease,  disgust,  and 
mutual  hate.  During  the  years  of  1855-6,  as  many  as 
twenty  murders  were  committed  by  the  Indians  ;  and  sev 
eral  of  them  were  prosecuted  and  hung  according  to  law. 
But  no  account  was  kept  of  murdered  Indians  ;  and  yet  it 
was  a  matter  of  common  talk,  that  they  were  shot  when 
ever  it  could  be  done  with  safety  to  the  shooter. 

In  the  summer  of  1855,  great  numbers  of  men  went 
from  Northern  California  and  Southern*  Oregon  to  the 
newly-discovered  Mines,  north  of  the  Dalls,  in  the  Indian 
country  ;  and  as  I  had  frequent  opportunities  of  conversa 
tion  with  them,  I  learned  that  it  was  the  settled  intention 
of  most  of  them  to  make  war  in  that  section.  Some  of  them 
told  me  that  they  should  not  be  satisfied  until  every  In 
dian  was  destroyed  from  the  Coast  to  the  Eocky  Mount 
ains  ;  and  I  heard  one  company  of  men  declare  that  they 
had  adopted  as  a  maxim,  that  if  they  saw  a  Buck  (Indian) 
and  a  deer  at  the  same  time,  they  should  shoot  the  Buck, 
and  leave  the  deer  to  run.  Nothing  here  needs  to  be  said 
of  the  boasted  Democracy  under  which  we  live;  but  should 
any  civilized  people  sanction  or  overlook  sentiments  01 
actions  like  these  ?  That  they  are  exhibited  with  an  im 
punity  that  continually  gathers  boldness,  shows  the  exist 
ence  of  something  among  us  worse  than  barbarism — worse 
even  than  utter  savageism  ;  for  it  perverts  its  prerogative 
— it  transmutes  its  own  free  conditions  into  the  materials 
of  a  fiercer,  and  more  relentless,  cruel,  and  destructive 
despotism  than  could  be  concocted  without  those  strong 
elements  of  license,  miscalled  freedom,  which,  in  the  pres 
ence  of  a  weaker  party,  and  the  absence  of  all  essential 
restraint,  rouse  the  latent  poison,  and  stimulate  all  the 
baser  passions  in  the  hearts  of  bad  men.  A  great  tyrant 
can  not  be  formed  in  the  shadow  of  a  Despotism,  because 
there  must  be  an  ideal,  and  an  atmosphere  of  freedom, 

*  Upper  Falls  of  the  Columbia  River. 


26  A  PLEA  FOR  THE   INDIANS. 

which  he  can  assume,  and  absorb,  and  concentrate  in  the 
Supreme  Self,  until  it  become  the  means  and  the  material 
of  inhuman  wrongs,  and  the  grand  signet  of  unwarrantable 
power.  To  prove  this,  we  need  go  no  further  than  to  the 
Yankee  Slave-Driver  of  our  Southern  Plantations,  whose 
cruelty  is  in  exact  proportion  to  the  strength  of  the  forces 
that  developed  him.  Great  principles  are  always  liable  to 
abuse ;  and  their  capability  of  evil  is  in  the  precise  measure 
of  their  power,  as  we  daily  see  in  Religion,  and  all  other 
excitements  that  move  and  monopolize  the  heart  of  Man 
kind.  Hence  the  peculiar  dangers  of  Eepublican  Institu 
tions  ;  for  the  more  highly  energized  Selfishness,  which 
they  evolve  and  nourish,  ever  seeks  to  destroy  and  inter 
rupt  the  great  interests  and  aims  of  all  true  Government, 
by  thrusting  in  at  random  its  own  petty,  but  tenacious  and 
persistent  evils ;  and  thus  the  permanent  and  the  universal 
may  be,  for  a  time,  actually  supplanted  by  the  transient 
and  the  partial. 


CHAPTER    IV. 

THE     WAR    SPIRIT. 

THE  state  of  alarm  and  terror  into  which  the  Tribes, 
throughout  the  country,  were  thrown,  may  easily  be  con 
ceived.  The  long  period  of  years,  during  which  they  had 
traded  with  the  Fur  Company,  had  given  them  frequent 
opportunity  to  see  the  superior  strength  and  vast  resources 
of  the  White  Eace ;  and  to  many  of  the  Tribes,  who  de 
pended  on  their  trade  and  friendship  for  supplies,  peace 
was  a  matter  of  necessity,  which  might  seem  to  involve 
almost  their  very  existence  itself.  The  Chiefs,  especially 
those  that  lived  in  Kogue  Kiver  Valley,  called  on  the 
Authorities,  again  and  again,  to  claim  protection  for  their 
people.  They  earnestly  asserted  their  disinclination  for 
war ;  but  at  the  same  time  declared  their  inability  to  pre 
vent  it,  unless  their  rights  were  respected. 

But  no  efficient  measures  whatever  being  taken  to  redress 
those  aggravated  wrongs,  the  Indians  had  no  alternative 
but  to  combine  for  mutual  protection.  They  saw  that 
nothing  but  slavery  or  death  was  to  be  gained  by  sub 
mission  ;  yet  they  were  far  from  being  unanimous  for  war. 
They  knew  that  General  Palmer  and  many  of  the  citizens 
sympathized  in  their  grievances :  but  it  was  impossible,  in 
the  nature  of  things,  that  they  should  continue  satisfied 
amid  such  perils,  such  intolerable  indignities,  and  the  con 
stant  wasting  of  their  numbers.  Some  of  them  became 
desperate ;  and,  against  the  wishes  of  their  Chiefs,  assumed 
the  responsibility  of  severe  and  prompt  retaliation ;  while 
others  bade  open  defiance  to  their  aggressors.  Many  of 
the  Sub  Indian  Agents,  as  well  as  the  citizens  generally, 
evinced  great  alarm  at  the  prospect  of  a  savage  onslaught ; 
but,  strangely  enough,  they  never  seemed  to  think  of  the 


28  A  PLEA  FOR  THE   INDIANS. 

most  appropriate  means  of  preventing  such  an  occurrence, 
but  ratter  did  all  that  could  be  done  to  confirm  and 
hasten  it. 

Toward  the  last  of  the  summer  of  1855,  a  Letter  signed 
"A  Miner,"  and  dated  at  Kogue  Eiver  Valley,  appeared  in 
the  Oregon  Statesman,  in  which  the  "Red  Skins"  were  de 
nounced,  and  the  most  savage  massacres  predicted  that  had 
ever  filled  the  annals  of  Indian  "Warfare.  Dr.  H — — ,  a 
prominent  citizen,  ascertaining  that  the  signature  was  as 
sumed,  and  that  the  writer  was,  in  reality,  none  other  than 
the  Sub-Agent  for  Southern  Oregon,  thought  it  was  of 
sufficient  importance  to  present  at  a  public  meeting,  con 
vened  in  one  of  the  principal  towns  in  the  Willamette 
Valley ;  and  in  a  speech  occupying  several  columns  in  the 
papers  of  the  day,  he  urged,  in  earnest  and  graphic  lan 
guage,  the  necessity  of  mustering  for  active  service  three 
thousand  troops.  Some  time  afterward  Governor  Stevens, 
of  Washington  Territory,  proclaimed  that,  but  for  his  vig 
orous  measures,  there  would  have  been  a  whirlwind  of 
war.  All  the  papers  in  the  Territories,  and  in  Northern 
California,  were  also  urgent  for  war.  Even  the  Christian 
Advocate  gave  its  countenance ;  and  such  was  the  excite 
ment  and  clamor  against  the  Indians,  that  Governor  Cur- 
rey  of  Oregon  Territory  issued  a  proclamation  of  war, 
with  a  call  for  Volunteers  to  take  the  field  immediately. 
The  war  spirit,  in  one  form  pr  another,  took  full  possession 
of  the  minds  of  the  people ;  and  all  were  absorbed  with 
anticipations  of  the  terrors,  the  perils,  and  the  excitements 
n ,  of  savage  warfare.  When  it  was  known  that  General 
Wool,  commander  of  the  Pacific  forces,  demurred,  and 
even  refused  to  participate,  the  most  intense  indignation 
was  not  only  felt  but  generally  expressed ;  while  the  more 
candid  attributed  his  conduct  to  a  loss  of  vigor  and  the 
imbecility  of  old  age.  No  one  seems  to  have  been  capable 
of  perceiving  such  a  thing  as  humanity  in  the  case. 

I  am  far  from  wishing  to  reflect  unkindly  upon  my  fel 
low-citizens,  or  to  asperse  the  motives  of  any.  There  was, 
undoubtedly,  a  cause  for  all  which  occurred.  But  as  my 
Acquaintance  with  the  incipient  steps,  as  well  as  with  the 
progressive  unfolding  of  these  hostile  movements,  had  in- 


A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS.  29 

spired  me  with  sentiments  the  reverse  of  those  generally 
entertained,  and  essentially  the  same  as  those  expressed  by 
General  Wool,  and  also  by  General  Palmer,  Superintend 
ent  of  the  Indian  Department  in  Oregon,  I  felt  that,  as  an 
American  citizen,  I  had  not  only  a  right,  but  a  duty,  to 
use  the  freedom  of  speech  and  of  the  press  for  the  ut 
terance  of  my  deep  convictions.  And  when  angry  in 
vective  was  everywhere  heard  against  those  functionaries, 
and  each  of  the  two  Governors  proclaimed  bitter  denun 
ciations  against  them,  and  the  Legislature  of  Oregon  me 
morialized  the  President  for  their  removal,  I  felt  an  im 
perative  obligation  to  put  forth  my  humble  efforts  in 
behalf,  not  only  of  those  accused  Officials,  but  of  the 
injured  Eace  for  whom  they  so  nobly  plead. 

Many  of  my  fellow-citizens,  through  a  misapprehension 
of  the  motives  by  which  I  was  actuated,  believed,  or 
affected  to  believe,  that  my  efforts  were  traitorous,  and  in 
imical  to  public  good.  Hence,  not  one  of  the  numerous 
Letters  which  I  wrote,  during  the  winter  of  1855-6,  foi 
the  Oregon  and  California  papers,  appeared  in  print.  They 
were  all  either  suppressed  by  the  postal  agents,  or  refused 
by  the  Editors. 

In  regard  to  the  correspondence,  as  published  in  the 
papers,  between  Governors  Stevens  and  Currey,  and  Gen 
eral  Wool,  as  the  great  majority  seems  to  side  with  the 
Governors,  I  propose  to  state  the  position  of  the  parties, 
and  try  the  correctness  of  the  public  sentiment  in  this  most 
important  case.  It  seems  that  the  General  regards  this 
war  as  unnecessarily  commenced,  and  having  more  of  the 
character  of  a  speculation  to  cheat  the  Government,  than 
of  a  sanctioned  and  legalized  conflict  with  a  proper  Enemy. 

The  two  Governors,  on  the  other  hand,  assume  that  war 
was  unavoidable.  They  commenced  an  extensive  cam 
paign,  exciting,  driving,  and  destroying  Indians  in  every 
direction ;  and  because  they  occasionally  received  a  re 
taliatory  blow — a  house  or  two  was  burned  here,  or  a  few 
lives  taken  there — they  pointed  to  these,  as  proof  certain, 
that  war  existed,  and  that  the  General  was  stupidly  wilful 
in  not  perceiving  it  at  first. 

I  believe  the  story  of  the  Three  Boys  and  the  Hornets, 


30  A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS. 

offers  a  fair  illustration  of  the  above  position.  Finding  a 
hornet's  nest  in  the  woods,  Tom  and  Bill  proposed  throw 
ing  stones;  "for,"  said  they,  "  the  Hornets  will  sting  us ;" 
but  HaTy  preferred  to  pass  along,  and  not  molest  them. 
The  two  young  assailants  commenced  their  work;  but 
soon,  with  disfigured  faces  and  swollen  eyes,  gave  it  up, 
reproaching  their  friend  for  not  helping  to  kill  the  Hornets. 
Harry  replied  that,  as  the  Hornets  were  living  in  the 
woods,  at  peace  with  all  the  world,  he  knew  of  no  good 
reason  for  disturbing  them — and  that,  too,  to  his  own  in- 

JUI7- 
Let  us  examine  and  see  if  this  view  of  the  subject  is 

not  sustained.  "We  assume  it  as  a  law  that  Governors 
have  no  right  to  resort  to  military  force  until  civil  process 
has  been  tried,  and  found  inadequate  for  the  maintenance 
of  order.  But  what  is  the  actual  history  of  the  case  ? 
Why,  men  are  roaming  all  over  the  Indian  country,  abus 
ing  and  killing  the  unprotected  natives,  until  terror  and 
natural  instinct  compel  them  to  unite  for  mutual  aid  and 
protection.  Certainly  these  are  circumstances  requiring 
the  prompt  interference  of  the  Civil  Power,  first  to  investi 
gate,  then  to  redress  the  aggrieved,  and  restrain  the  aggres 
sor.  But  instead  of  this,  the  Governor  issues  an  exciting 
proclamation  and  call  to  arms,  as  if  the  country  was  actu 
ally  invaded  by  an  overwhelming  force,  giving  as  a  reason 
for  the  necessity  of  this  a  letter,  out  of  which  he  had 
managed  to  concoct  his  authority.  This  was  from  Mr. 
Olney,  Indian  Agent,  dated  Walla  Walla,  October  12, 1855, 
and  Governor  Currey  gives  the  following  quotation  : 

"The  Indians,  north  and  south  of  the  Columbia,  have 
either  commenced  open  hostilities,  or  are  concentrating  for 
that  purpose.  The  regular  forces  I  do  not  consider  suffi 
cient  for  chastising  the  Indians.  They  must  be  taught  our 
power.  They  must  be  humbled;  and,  in  all  conscience, 
send  a  force  that  can  do  it  effectually,  and  that  without 
delay." 

Bear  in  mind,  that  for  more  than  fifty  years  our  people 
had  traveled  and  trafficked  all  through  the  Indian  country, 
and  had  met  with  general  kindness  and  protection  from 
the  Natives.  It  was  not  until  the  Whites  had  become 


A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS.  31 

numerous,  and  grossly  abusive,  that  the  Indians,  from 
necessity^  resisted  further  aggressions ;  and  for  doing  this, 
the  Sub- Agent  calls  for  troops  to  "  chastise,"  which  means, 
to  kill.  Governor  Currey,  forgetting  that  he  had  Consta 
bles,  and  Sheriffs,  and  Citizens  to  enforce  justice  and  pre 
serve  peace,  forthwith  summons  the  people  to  war ;  and 
for  this  effort  to  "humble"  and  make  Indians  "feel  'our 
power,"  millions  of  dollars  are  expected  and  claimed  of 
the  General  Government. 

There  was  no  demur  on  the  part  of  the  Press,  or  Party 
Leaders,  as  to  the  propriety  of  an  immediate  campaign ; 
but  there  was  some  dispute  as  to  which  party  should  have 
the  honor  of  the  enterprise.  The  Democrats  were  jealous 
lest  some  prominent  Whigs  should  gain  promotion  and 
power;  and  so  covetous  were  they  of  this  "bad  emin 
ence,"  that  they  actually  got  up  a  petition,  endorsed  by 
numerous  signatures,  praying  that  the  Governor  should 
allow  none  but  Democrats  to  hold  office  of  command  over 
the  gathering  hosts.  This  in  itself  .is  a  remarkable  feature, 
and  one  to  which  no  thinking  man  can  be  indifferent, 
since  it  clearly  exhibits  the  audacity  of  that  usurping 
spirit,  whose  highest  prerogative  is  brute  force — a  spirit 
which  has  trodden,  sharp-shod,  not  only  over  humanity 
and  natural  right,  but  over  the  broadest  principles  of 
equity  and  common  law. 

Nor  were  the  Whigs  at  all  indifferent  to  their  own 
claims  in  the  case  ;  while  the  Know-Nothings  were  alike 
envious  and  jealous  of  both.  The  latter,  through  their 
organ,  The  Oregonian,  urged  on  a  war  of  Death  to  In 
dians  and  Catholics ;  at  the  same  time  pouring  out  the 
most  bitter  invectives  on  those  who  were  carrying  it  for 
ward. 

But  what  will  strike  the  mind  of  the  true  Patriot  and 
Christian  as  the  most  lamentable  feature,  is  the  entire  ab 
sence  of  the  moral  element  as  a  remedial  agent  in  these 
disturbances.  This  appears  the  more  remarkable,  when  it 
is  known  that  the  settlement  of  Oregon  commenced  with 
the  erection  of  an  establishment  for  Christian  instruction, 
and  that  vast  sums  of  money  were  sent  from  the  States  foi 
the  support  of  Missions,  and  for  the  establishment  of 


82  A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIAN'S. 

Schools,  Colleges,  and  Churches.  In  these  important  means 
of  civilization  Oregon  is  behind  no  country  of  its  age ;  and 
yet,  during  the  incipient  and  progressive  stages  of  this 
war,  no  voice  for  mercy  was  heard ;  and  a  minister  of  the 
"  Grospel  of  Peace"  was  hardly  known  in  the  land.  In 
vain  did  I  peruse  the  public  papers,  or  listen  to  speeches, 
whether  before  promiscuous  assemblies  or  in  halls  of  legis 
lation  ;  nowhere  could  be  seen  or  heard  such  appeals  to 
the  national  honor  as  were  based  on  principles  of  truth, 
and  justice,  and  magnanimity.  The  fact  of  our  superiority, 
as  Christians,  over  heathen  savages,  was  always  assumed ; 
but  the  purity  and  benevolence,  characteristic  of  the  Chris 
tian,  were  never  either  recognized  by  any  practical  theory, 
or  exhibited  in  the  tangible  authority  of  action. 
,  The  following  quotations  may  be  ta&en  as  a  specimen 
I  of  the  spirit  in  which  the  Indians  were  generally  treated. 
They  are  from  an  Oregon  paper  of  November  10th,  1855  : 
"  The  Indians  are  ignorant,  abject,  and  debased  by  nature," 
"whose  minds  are  as  incapable  of  instruction  as  their 
bodies  are  of  labor."  "  They  are  heroes  only  when  women 
and  children  are  to  be  murdered."  They  have  nothing  in 
common  with  Humanity  but  the  form;"  "and  God  has 
sent  us  to  destroy  them,  as  he  did  the  Israelites  of  old  to 
similar  tribes."  "  There  is  no  evidence  of  sympathy  or 
i'uvor  for  Indians  in  the  people  or  authorities  of  Oregon,  in 
the  present  emergency." 

Here  are  six  assertions ;  and  as  they  embody  the  princi 
ples  upon  which  hostilities  are  generally  based,  let  us  give 
them  a  brief  review.  First.  They  are  called  "ignorant, 
abject,  and  depraved."  I  admit  the  charge ;  but,  at  the 
same  time,  leave  it  for  their  accusers  to  demonstrate  that 
the  Indians,  even  under  the  debasing  influence  of  their 
own  treatment  and  example,  are  more  depraved  than  them 
selves.  There  is  one  significant  and  well-known  fact.  The 
Border  Indian  is  as  far  from  filling  the  true  measure  of  the 
Original  Freeman  of  the  Woods,  as  his  Hoosier  tyrant  is 
from  representing  the  liberal  and  intelligent  citizen,  whose 
right  to  join  in  the  government  of  others  is  based  on  his 
power  to  govern  himself.  Let  him  that  is  without  sin 


A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS.  33 

among  them  cast  the  first  stone ;  and  the  poor  Indians 
would  be  safe  and  secure  forever. 

In  refutation  of  the  second  charge,  that  they  are  only 
heroes  when  women  and  children  are  to  be  murdered,  I 
am  happy  to  present  direct  proof.  At  the  first  onslaught 
of  the  Whites  upon  the  peaceable  Indians  in  Eogue  Eiver 
Valley,  they  massacred  fourteen  women  and  children. 
Directly  after  this,  the  Chiefs  applied  to  Captain  Smith  at 
Fort  Lane,  begging  that  their  women  and  children  might 
be  spared  ;  "  for,"  said  they,  u  we  do  not  slay  women  and 
children  in  our  wars  ;  and  we  will  not  hurt  your  wives  and 
little  ones,  if  you  do  not  kill  ours."  This  was  stated  to 
me,  both  by  the  Captain,  and  Dr.  Ambrose,  then  Eesident 
Agent  among  them. 

In  regard  to  their  alleged  incapacity  of  instruction,  the 
proof  to  the  contrary  is  also  ample  and  positive.  I  have 
been  told,  by  several  who  have  heard  the  declamation  of 
their  Chiefs,  that  for  beautiful  imagery,  and  glowing  elo 
quence,  their  speeches  were  akin  to  those  of  Isaiah,  and 
David,  and  Job.  Their  bows  and  arrows,  their  canoes  and 
fishing  implements,  their  decorations  and  their  huts,  which 
are  all  so  admirably  adapted  to  their  circumstances,  bear 
witness  of  their  mechanical  ingenuity  and  dexterous  work 
manship;  and  it  is  well-known  that  no  foreigners  so 
promptly  learn,  and  so  properly  speak  our  language  as  do 
the  Indians  whenever  they  have  a  fair  opportunity  for  its 
acquirement. 

I  have  now  before  me  several  letters  from  friends  in 
Oregon,  from  which  I  extract  the  following.  "I  should 
like,"  writes  a  merchant,  "to  raise  an  Indian  girl,  not  hav 
ing  one  of  my  own.  I  know  of  two  or  three  Indian 
children  that  have  been  raised  by  families  in  this  place, 
who  give  great  satisfaction  to  their  adopted  parents." 

A  gentleman  of  Oregon  City,  writes  thus  of  two  Indian 
children :  "  They  can  read,  and  write,  and  cipher,  as  well 
as  I  can,  and  I  think  understand  the  Bible  much  better. 
I  am  almost  ashamed  to  say  it,  but  so  it  is.  They  are  very 
active  and  intelligent  about  house,  and  the  boy  can  work 
on  the  farm  with  any  white  man  you  will  find.  There  is 
also  in  another  family  of  this  city,  an  Indian  boy,  who 


34  A  PLEA  FOR  THE   INDIANS. 

works  as  steadily  as  any  white  boy  in  the  vicinity.  He  is 
a  Sunday-school  scholar,  and  was  formerly  in  my  class, 
He  is  a  better  scholar  than  any  boy  in  the  school.  He  can 
answer  almost  any  question  you  like  to  ask.  He  really 
understands  what  he  reads ;  and  he  frequently  surprises  his 
Teacher  with  his  answers  and  remarks.  Two  years  ago  he 
could  not  write  his  name — in  fact  he  did  not  know  one 
letter  from  another." 

I  cut  the  following  from  a  California  paper,  the  Trinity 
Times. 

"PITY  THE  POOR  DIGGER  INDIANS. 

"  A  benevolent  citizen  of  our  town  has  rescued  two  of 
them  from  their  wild  haunts.  The  male,  who  is  nearly 
grtfvvn,  has  intelligence  and  capacity  equal  to  white  strip 
lings  of  his  age,  and  has  become  an  able  assistant  in  the 
business  of  his  excellent  Guardian  and  Patron.  The 
younger,  a  female,  who  is  now  an  attendant  at  our  village 
school,  betrays  an  eagerness,  alacrity,  and  power  for  .scho 
lastic  acquirements,  that  would  do  no  discredit  to  her  white 
playmates." 

On  the  steamer,  as  we  were  coming  from  California  last 
September,  I  became  acquainted  with  Mr.  J.  Chamberlin, 
now  of  Rome,  Macomb  county,  Michigan.  He  informed 
me  that  he  had  been  employed  by  General  Palmer  to  aid 
the  Indians  just  removed  from  Rogue  River,  in  the  erection 
of  a  school-house,  and  was  engaged  for  two  months  as 
their  first  Teacher.  He  testifies  that  in  three  weeks  they 
could  master  the  alphabet.  The  boys  made  good  progress 
in  writing  and  figures,  and  the  girls  became  excellent 
singers.  "Never  before,"  said  he,  "have  I  seen  a  more 
interesting  and  progressive  company  of  scholars." 

In  Rogue  River  Valley  lives  a  Mr.  Thomas,  who  has 
taken  an  Indian  boy,  thirteen  years  old.  On  being  sent  to 
school,  the  very  first  day  he  learned  and  remembered  every 
letter  of  the  alphabet,  besides  spelling  several  words.  The 
Teacher  was  so  astonished,  that  in  the  evening  he  walked 
over  to  the  house  of  his  Guardian  to  inquire  if  he  had  not 
previously  given  him  instruction,  and  he  then  learned  from 


A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS.  35 

Mr.  Thomas  himself,  that  what  he  had  witnessed,  incredi 
ble  as  it  might  seem,  was  really  the  boy's  initial  process  in 
the  art  of  reading. 

Judge  Thornton,  of  Albany,  0.  T.,  and  author  of  an 
excellent  work  on  Oregon  and  California,  adds  another  to 
these  high  testimonies.  During  a  pleasant  visit  which  I  had 
with  him,  he  seemed  never  tired  of  speaking  of  an  Indian 
boy  and  girl,  who  had  been  with  them  for  several  years. 
While  walking  with  the  Judge  to  his  fine  garden  and 
nursery,  I  saw,  in  the  distance,  a  youth  busy  cleaning  and 
arranging  the  beds.  "  Yonder,"  said  he,  "is  a  faithful 
boy,  the  most  faithful  I  ever  had.  I  can  always  depend 
upon  him  whether  at  home  or^  abroad." 

Mrs.  Thornton  also  informed  me  that  the  girl  is  a  pro 
ficient  in  the  common  English  branches  of  education. 

I  had  also  an  introduction,  and  several  pleasant  visits,  to 
the  family  of  Dr.  McLaughlin,  of  Oregon  city,  of  whom  I 
have  already  spoken.  His  lady  is  the  daughter  of  an 
Indian  Chief  of  the  Snake  Nation.  They  have  a  son,  a 
fine,  noble-looking  man,  several  daugh-ters,  and  a  number 
of  grand-children.  The  young  ladies  are  accomplished 
musicians,  and  on  several  occasions  gratified  me  by  their 
performance  on  the  melodeon,  accompanied  by  their  sweet 
and  silvery  voices. 

Now,  in  all  seriousness,  before  God  and  before  the 
world,  I  ask  every  parent,  and  every  public  officer — I  ask 
the  Congress  and  President — I  ask  every  citizen  of  the 
land — would  it  not  be  murder  to  kill  any  one  of  the  child 
ren  to  whom  the  foregoing  refers?  Common  conscience, 
and  common  sense,  must  answer,  "  Yes."  Then  is  it  not 
equally  murder  to  kill  their  brothers  and  sisters,  their 
fathers  and  mothers?  Universal  Humanity  declares  it; 
and,  if  there  can  be  a  difference  in  the  crime,  surely  it  is 
when  we  add  meanness  to  wrong,  by  trampling  on  the 
weak  and  the  defenseless. 

That  the  Indians,  with  proper  encouragement,  have 
both  a  disposition  and  ability  to  work,  is  susceptible  of 
abundant  proof.  Mr.  Harvey,  who  was  formerly  an  officer 
in  the  Hudson  Bay  Company,  informed  me  that  on  one 
occasion  he  had  a  thousand  acres  of  wheat,  and  only  three 


36  A  PLEA  FOE  THE  INDIANS. 

white  men.  The  labor  of  the  harvest  was  all  timely  and 
well  performed  by  Indians. 

That  they  possess  the  social  affections  in  a  high  degree, 
the  following  circumstance  will  illustrate.  It  was  related 
to  me  by  a  friend  in  the  Willamette. 

"In  the  fall  of  1853,  about  100  Indians  encamped  near 
my  house,  for  the  purpose  of  catching  fish.  Perceiving  a 
very  aged  pair  among  them,  I  made  them  a  present  of  my 
tent,  thinking  to  add  to  their  comfort ;  but  on  revisiting 
them  a  few  days  afterward,  and  not  seeing  it,  I  inquired 
the  reason,  and  found  that  they  had  taken  it  to  their  Chief, 
and  he  had^  appropriated  it  to  the  use  of  a  widow  among 
them,  who  had  small  children." 

There  are  also  living  in  the  Valley,  a  White  Lady  and 
her  daughter,  who  furnish  a  case  in  point.  Having  lost 
all  their  property  in  crossing  the  mountains,  they  afterward 
fell  among  the  Indians,  who  fed  and  took  care  of  them  for 
weeks,  with  the  utmost  kindness. 

The  foregoing  facts  appeal  to  us  in  language  which  we 
can  not  refuse  to  hear,  and  with  a  force  which  we  must 
acknowledge.  They  are  not  isolated  cases,  but  are  posi 
tively  characteristic  of  the  people,  wherever  they  have  not 
been"  abused  by  deception  and  ill-treatment.  How  mani 
festly  wrong,  then  it  must  be  to  speak  of  them  as  having 
"  nothing  of  Humanity  but  the  form."  That  there  are 
many  among  them,  who  may  be  exceptions,  is  not  denied ; 
but  let  us  remember  how  vast  are  the  numbers — even 
among  our  own  people — who  despise  labor,  and  indulge  in 
conduct  the  reverse  of  religion,  and  even  true  civilization. 
Neither  should  it  be  forgotten,  that  much  of  Indian  de 
pravity  is  the  direct  result  of  contact  with  those  who 
should  have  taught  them  better ;  and  that  even  in  the  very 
crimes  for  which  they  are  condemned,  others  are  the  most 
guilty. 

It  is,  I  think,  equally  manifest,  that  the  assertion,  that 
we,  like  the  Israelites,  are  sent  to  destroy,  is  a  vain  and 
wicked  assumption.  In  the  first  place,  it  is  not  certain 
that,  considering  our  advantages,  we  are  any  better  than 
they ;  and,  in  the  second  place,  no  Nation  or  People,  since 
the  days  of  Christ,  has  received  any  Divine  commission  of 


A  PLEA   FOE  THE   INDIANS.  37 

a  social  bearing  that  could  set  aside  the  Gospel  mandate  to 
"Love  one  another."  It  follows,  that,  for  whatever  we  do 
toward  them,  either  as  a  people  or  as  individuals,  contrary 
to  the  Golden  Kule,  we  are  responsible ;  and  we  can  no 
more  escape  retribution,  than  if  these  acts  were  committed 
against  the  most  enlightened  people  on  the  Earth. 

Neither  is  it  true,  as  some  would  have  it,  that  there  was  no 
evidence  of  sympathy  or  favor  for  Indians  by  the  Author 
ities  and  People  of  Oregon.  Both  General  Palmer  and  Gen 
eral  Wool,  in  their  official  capacities,  did  all  that  men  could 
do  to  resist  the  torrent  of  wrong.  There  were  also  several 
clergymen,  and  many  citizens,  all  over  the  Territory,  whose 
hearts  yearned  within  them  at  the  shameful  impositions 
and  unmerited  sufferings  they  were  compelled  to  witness. 
And  even  among  those  who  were  actually  engaged  in  hos 
tile  measures,  there  were  men  who  refused  to  participate 
in  the  work  of  death.  Some  of  them  even  fell  down  and 
wept  at  the  sight  of  such  barbarities.  There  were  scores 
of  men.  who  enlisted  under  an  idea  of  duty  and  patriotism, 
who  became  convinced  of  the  injustice  of  the  war,  und  left 
the  service  in  disgust. 


CHAPTER  V. 

WAR   IN   THE   SOUTH. 

I  WILL  now  resume  the  narrative  of  events,  from  the 
time  of  my  arrival  to  that  of  my  leaving  Rogue  Eiver 
Valley.  I  wish  it  here  to  be  understood,  that,  as  I  kept  no 
notes,  and  at  the  time  of  their  occurrence  had  no  thought 
of  being  in  this  manner  connected  with  their  publicity,  I 
may  not  be  perfectly  exact  in  some  trifling  particulars.  But 
every  important  occurrence  of  the  times  made  too  strong 
an  impression  ever  to  be  forgotten ;  and  in  these,  I  can 
vouch  for  the  correctness  of  whatever  testimony  I  may  be 
able  to  give. 

I  will  here  observe  that  the  war  in  Southern  Oregon, 
although  originating  in  the  same  general  causes,  was,  nev 
ertheless,  a  distinct  affair  from  that  which  was  carried  on 
five  or  six  hundred  miles  to  the  North,  and  in  reference  to 
which  the  foregoing  was  chiefly  written. 

In  the  North  the  Indians  were  in  large  bodies,  and 
chiefly  in  their  own  country,  far  away  from  the  Whites ; 
while  in  the  South,  their  Reserve  was  surrounded,  more  or 
less,  by  White  settlements.  There  were  also  numerous 
small  bands,  scattered  among  the  mountains  and  gulshes, 
and  often  in  proximity  to  the  Miners,  who  were  working  in 
the  same. 

Finding,  on  my  entrance  into  the  Valley,  a  condition  of 
war,  as  already  related,  I  earnestly  sought  to  learn  the 
cause,  and  found  no  lack  of  informants.  Most  of  these 
narratives  teemed  with  "  Savage  Outrages"  and  "  Indian 
Barbarities';"  but  I  met  with  some  who  spoke  more  con 
siderately  for  the  Red  Man.  Among  these  I  would  men 
tion  particularly  the  Messrs.  Culver,  who,  I  believe,  came 
into  the  Valley  in  1849,  and  for  a  long  time  lived  nearly 


A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS.  39 

alone  among  the  Natives.  These  gentlemen  informed  me 
that  the  Indians  were  then  quite  friendly,  though  numer 
ous  ;  and  they  were  easily  controlled.  For  reasonable  re 
muneration  they  would  readily  render  assistance.  They 
expressed  great  satisfaction  at  the  erection  of  a  log  cabin, 
and  were  anxious  for  Mrs.  Culver  to  come  and  live  among 
them.  As  they  were  familiar  around  the  cabin,  it  hap 
pened  that,  occasionally,  a  knife,  a  file,  or  some  small  thing 
that  took  their  fancy,  would  be  missing ;  yet,  on  informa 
tion  being  given  to  their  head  men,  the  lost  article  was  al 
ways  promptly  returned. 

I  also  met  a  gentleman,  apparently  a  candid  and  truth 
ful  man,  who  had  come  to  California  with  the  first  military 
colonists,  under  Colonel  Stevenson,  and  had  traversed  the 
country  back  and  forth  to  Oregon,  before  the  discovery  of 
gold.  When  I  asked  how  I  should  address  him,  he  said 
he  would  give  me  facts,  but  it  might  be  some  risk  to  tell 
his  name;  "for,"  said  he,  "the  first  settlers  of  Oregon 
were  a  reckless  set  of  men,  who  delighted  in  arbitrary 
power  over  the  Indians,  or  any  others  who  opposed  their 
course." 

"Well,"  I  replied,  "give  me,  then,  some'of  the  facts,  es 
pecially  such  as  relate  to  the  beginning  of  the  Difficulties." 
And  thus  invited,  he  began,  as  follows  : 

"The  first  that  I  knew  of  the  difficulties  was  in  the 
Willamette  Valley,  and,  I  think,  in  1848  or  1849.  Pre 
vious  to  that  time,  the  Indians  lived  and  traded  in  confi 
dence  with  the  Fur  Companies,  and  seemed  to  improve 
under  the  instruction  of  the  missionaries.  But  in  the  year 
'49  a  great  emigration,  principally  from  the  Slave  States, 
came  in.  They  took  immediate  possession  of  all  the  choice 
lands,  and  passed  a  law,  allowing  to  each  man  and  wife  a 
section  of  640  acres.  This  included  much  of  the  bottom 
land,  from  which  the  Indians  had  been  accustomed  to  de 
rive  a  large  amount  of  their  subsistence,  in  seeds,  roots,  and 
berries.  The  following  year  these  new  Governors  passed 
another  law,  offering  premiums  for  the  destruction  of 
wolves,  bears,  and  other  vermin,  but  excluding  Indians 
from  the  right  of  competition  for  the  bounties. 

"  Being  thus  robbed  of  their  lands,  and  treated  in  every 


40  A  PLEA  FOR  THE   INDIANS. 

respect  so  differently  from  what  they  had  been  accustomed 
to,  it  was  natural  for  the  Indians  to  become  seriously  dissatis 
fied.  But  the  Settlers,  instead  of  considering  the  unfortu 
nate  circumstances  which  they  themselves  had  caused,  only 
the  more  abused  them  for  their  discontent ;  and  from  de 
spising,  soon  began  to  rank  them  among  the  vermin  that 
should  be  destroyed. 

"  When  gold  was  discovered  in  California,  in  1850-51, 
large  companies  of  men  started  from  Willamette,  through 
the  Umpqua  and  Eogue  Eiver  Valleys,  and  all  along  the 
route  to  Sutter's  Fort.  Whenever  they  saw  a  straggling 
Indian,  they  made  a  point  of  shooting  him. 

"  On  one  occasion  they  came  to  a  high  bluff,  overhang 
ing  a  running  brook,  and  seeing  an  aged  Indian  and  a  boy 
catching  fish,  they  fired,  and  the  bleeding  victims  hid 
themselves  in  the  brush.  One  of  the  men  remonstrated, 
saying,  that  men  who  could  do  so,  would  not  hesitate  to 
shoot  babies  ;  upon  which,  great  anger  was  aroused,  and  the 
individual  was  threatened  to  be  shot,  if  such  a  sentiment 
was  repeated  in  their  presence. 

"  On  arriving  at  the  Ea  vines,  some  of  their  horses  were 
missing ;  and  «a  party  went  in  search  of  them.  Coming 
across  a  band  of  Indians,  they  charged  them  with  the  theft; 
and  without  the  least  evidence,  eleven  of  them  were  shot 
down  on  the  spot.  But  as  the  animals  were  not  found, 
some  Indians,  who  had  been  at  Sutter's  Fort,  were  offered 
a  large  reward,  on  condition  that  they  would  return  their 
horses,  with  the  scalps  of  the  thieves.  The  Indians,  sev 
eral  in  number,  got  on  the  trail,  and  afterward  returned 
with  the  horses,  and  two  scalps,  reporting  that  the  thieves 
were  three  White  Men,  one  of  whom  made  his  escape. 
Upon  enquiring,  it  was  found  that  three  White  Men,  an 
swering  to  the  descriptions,  had  left  the  neighborhood ;  but 
the  promised  reward  was  not  given. 

"  On  another  occasion,  a  White  Man  being  found  dead, 
was  supposed  to  have  been  killed  by  Indians.  A  com 
pany  was  made  up  forthwith,  an  Indian  Eanche  was  sur 
rounded,  and  all  the  inmates  were  put  to  death — about 
forty  souls — including  men,  women,  and  children.  The 
domineering  spirit  grew  by  what  ft  fed  on,  until  excited  to 


A   PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS.  41 

madness  by  these  oft-recurring  scenes  of  blood,  men  be 
came  utterly  regardless  of  justice,  even  toward  those  of 
their  own  Eace.  Whatever  a  man's  private  views  might 
be,  he  was  expected  to  go  with  the  crowd,  to  the  full  ex 
tent  of  every  enterprise,  and  the  more  questionable  the 
object,  the  more  did  they  insist  that  all  should  participate. 
Personal  freedom  was  thus  frequently  invaded ;  and  life 
itself  was  not  secure.  On  one  occasion,  an  aged  White 
Man,  who  had  persistently  continued  at  his  mining,  and 
utterly  refused  to  take  part  against  the  Indians,  was  visited 
by  twenty  men,  and  forced  to  mount  his  pony,  and  go  in 
pursuit.  After  resting  on  the  mountains,  they  shot  him, 
cut  off  his  head,  leaving  it  on  the  limb  of  a  tree,  and  di 
vided  his  property  among  themselves." 

Thus  ended  the  Narrative,  and  perhaps  a  greater  amount 
of  wrong  was  never  told  in  fewer  words. 

You  who  live  surrounded  by  genial  moral  influences,  and 
social  order,  will  find  it  difficult  to  credit;  such  statements 
as  the  foregoing ;  and  I,  for  one,  should  be  most  happy  if 
I  could  doubt  their  correctness.  But  alas !  cruel  and  re 
pulsive  to  Humanity  as  they  are,  my  own  experience  and 
observation,  as  well  as  the  testimony  of  others,  only  too 
truly  confirm  them. 

Having  located  my  family  on  one  of  the  principal  tribu 
taries  of  Kogue  Eiver,  which  had  been  a  favorite  resort,  or 
residence  of  the  Natives,  there  were  still  remaining  the  ex 
cavations,  the  poles,  bark,  and  coverings  of  their  wigwams, 
and  the  fresh  ashes  of  their  fires.  I  was  constantly  re 
minded  of  being  an  interloper  or  usurper  of  homes  which 
others  ought  to  possess,  or  for  which  they  ought  to  be 
paid.  This  feeling  made  me  sensitive  to  the  daily  reports, 
and  perhaps  helped  to  give  a  bias  to  views  not  generally 
entertained,  so  that  when  I  heard  of  hostilities  and  bloody 
strife,  it  was  natural  to  attribute  the  whole  to  the  aggressive 
spirit  of  our  people.  I  mention  this  that  others  may  form 
a  candid  judgment;  for  I  should  be  sorry  if,  in  the  vindi 
cation  of  one  Eace,  I  should  be  led  in  any  way  wrongfully 
to  asperse  the  character  of  another.  My  only  object  in 
making  this  appeal,  is  to  present  facts,  in  order  to  indicate 
the  remedy. 


4:2  A  PLEA  FOR  THE    INDIANS. 

I  have  already  alluded  to  the  traffic  carried  on  with  the 
Indians  by  base  men,  by  which  the  former  became  pos 
sessed  of  arms  and  ammunition,  and  also  to  the  immediate 
causes  which  led  to  mutual  murders.  I  will  now  narrate 
some  of  the  incidents  which  led  to  the  Southern  "War. 

A  small  valley  in  the  mountain,  not  far  from  where  I 
lived,  was  still  occupied  by  a  Tribe,  over  whom,  ruled  a 
veteran  old  Chief,  known  as  Tyyee  Jim.  He  was  a  brave, 
resolute  man,  determined  not  to  be  conquered,  yet  still  de 
sirous  of  honorable  peace.  When  he  found  that  his  men 
were  being  shot  off,  the  Chief  became  very  cautious,  only 
calling  upon  those  in  whom  he  had  confidence.  In  doing 
so  he  had  to  pass  a  public  road,  and  always  on  the  full 
run.  The  "Whites,  also,  were  in  an  equal  degree  of  fear, 
and  during  the  summer  of  1855,  they  dared  not  go  in  that 
direction  after  a  stray  beast,  except  with  an  armed  com 
pany. 

The  Chief  earnestly  remonstrated  against  this  state  of 
things,  and  asked,  "  Why  do  the  Bostons*  want  to  kill  us  ? 
We  do  not  wish  to  kill  them." 

At  length  another  Tribe  was  encouraged  to  make  war 
upon  them.  The  Chief  fell  in  the  conflict,  when  the 
Whites,  in  their  turn,  fell  upon  the  conquerors,  and 
slaughtered  many  of  them.  The  remnants  of  the  two 
tribes,  consisting  of  thirty  or  forty  warriors,  retired  as  far 
as  they  could  from  the  White  settlements,  without  in 
fringing  on  the  domains  of  the  Modocks,  and  other  Tribes, 
still  further  back. 

To  ward  the  latter  end  of  September,  these  poor  people, 
with  their  wives  and  little  ones,  came  to  within  ten  or 
twelve  miles  of  the  head  of  the  Valley,  to  a  favorite  spot 
for  gathering  berries.  Some  of  the  settlers  had  ascertained 
their  presence ;  and  as  a  horse  was  missing,  it  was  directly 
charged  upon  the  Indians.  A  company  of  sixteen  men, 
armed  with  rifles,  traveled  in  the  night,  so  that  their  ap 
proach  might  not  be  perceived ;  and  on  arriving,  at  early 
dawn,  before  the  camp,  and  finding  the  occupants  on  the 
watch,  they  retreated  a  few  rods.  Meanwhile  the  women 
and  children  hid  themselves  in  the  brush.  The  assailants 
*  Volunteers. 


A  PLEA  FOB  THE  INDIANS.  43 

addressed  the  warriors  with  oaths  and  curses,  and  took 
hold  of  some  of  the  camp  furniture ;  upon  which  the  In- 
dians  fired,  killing  one  and  wounding  another.  The 
Whites  then  fired  and  ran  home  for  reinforcements.  I 
have  given  you  the  most  favorable  version  of  this  circum 
stance,  because  it  was  generally  considered  the  beginning 
of  the  open  war.  And  as  the  horse,  on  account  of  which 
the  attack  was  made,  came  home  with  the  rope  and  stake 
dragging,  as  is  often  the  case,  there  were  some  who  asserted 
that  the  Indians  had  never  stolen  him,  and  that  the  "Whites 
discharged  the  first  volley,  and  were  in  the  act  of  destroy 
ing  the  camp  when  the  Indians  fired.  There  was  also  a 
dispute  as  to  how  many  Indians  were  killed.  Some  said 
several ;  others  said  none  were  hurt,  and  on  this  ground 
assert  that  the  Indians  commenced  the  war  in  Eogue  Kiver 
Yalley.  But  the  objection  is  trivial ;  for  the  actual  truth 
is  that  if  war  ever  can  be  justified,  the  Indians  might  have 
commenced  it  with  good  and  sufficient  reason,  almost 
every  day  of  their  lives — at  least  after  the  inpouring  tide 
of  slave-holding  Emigration.  The  least  attention  to  the 
main  facts  in  the  case  will  assure  one  of  this.  From  my 
own  knowledge  of  the  character  and  disposition  of  the  In 
dians  at  that  time,  I  think  there  is  good  reason  to  believe, 
that  if  a  few  citizens  had  gone  in  open  day,  in  a  friendly 
manner,  they  would  have  found  a  welcome  and  pleasa7it 
reception,  and  all  the  intelligence  about  the  horse  which 
the  Indians  could  give.  On  returning  with  large  ad 
ditional  forces  for  the  slain,  it  was  found  that  the  Indians 
had  moved  away. 


CHAPTER    VI. 

FURTHER    HOSTILITIES.* 

A  FEW  weeks  after  the  abeve  occurrence,  three  young 
men,  close  neighbors  of  mine,  each  with  four  yoke  of  oxen, 
and  wagons  loaded  with  flour,  started  up  the  Valley  intend 
ing  to  cross  over  the  Lyskiou  Mountains,  for  Yreka,  in 
California.  While  on  the  steepest  part  of  the  mountains, 
cheerily  driving  along,  without  the  least  suspicion  of  pres 
ent  danger,  they  were  fired  upon  by  a  hidden  foe,  and  two 
of  them  killed  ;  while  the  third,  with  Herculean  efforts  in 
running  up  hill,  made  his  escape.  Fourteen  of  the  cattle 
were  killed.  This  event  struck  terror  in  the  minds  of  the 
Settlers;  and,  indeed,  it  was  an  awful  sight  to  see  those 
sprightly  young  men,  who  had  §o  recently  passed  our 
doors,  with  all  the  warmth  and  buoyancy  of  youth,  now 
brought  back  bloody  and  stiff  in  death. 

No  one  seemed  to  think  that  the  Indians  had  any  cause 
for  such  an  act,  or  that  it  was  any  harm  to  make  them 
exiles  in  their  own  country,  or  to  keep  them  in  terror  and 
peril,  wherever  they  moved ;  but  all  realized  that  it  was  a 
dreadful  thing  to  live  in  fear  of  Indians. 

Now  it  was  that  a  war  of  extermination  began  to  be 
talked  of;  for  every  b©dy  seemed  to  think  of  nothing  less 
than  a  general  conspiracy  among  the  Tribes.  Others,  how 
ever,  thought  that  the  combinations  were  merely  for  self- 
protection,  as  was  a  natural  result  of  the  abuses  to  which 
they  were  subject. 

As  the  season  was  dry,  and  water  scarce,  many  men 
were  out  of  employ,  and  had  plenty  of  time  to  listen  to, 
and  repeat,  exciting  stories  of  Indian  outrage,  which  were 
often  manufactured  from  trifling  occurrences.  At  one 
time  a  company  of  Surveyors  were  seen  on  the  side  of  a 


A  PLEA  FOE  THE  INDIANS.  45 

mountain ;  and  forthwith  it  was  reported  that  the  Indians 
were  surrounding  the  Valley  for  a  general  slaughter. 
Then,  again,  a  Settler,  riding  a  little  way  from  home,  re 
turned  in  great  haste,  saying  that  he  had  been  fired  upon 
by  a  band  of  about  thirty  Indians ;  but  when  the  truth 
was  afterward  ascertained,  this  formidable  host  dwindled 
into  three  boys  shooting  at  a  target.  Fires  were  sometimes 
set  out,  and  the  people  were  alarmed  with  a  supposition 
that  they  were  signal  fires  to  call  the  Indians  together  for 
a  general  massacre.  In  some  cases  persons  have  absented 
themselves  for  a  time,  leaving  others  to  report  that  the 
Indians  had  killed  them. 

This  state  of  things  continued  until  the  people  got  into 
a  perfect  frenzy,  and  as  a  company  who  had  been  to  retali 
ate  upon  those  who  had  killed  the  Teamsters,  reported  that 
they  had  found  a  trail  leading  from  that  point  toward  the 
Eeserve  at  the  lower  end  of  the  Valley,  it  was  therefore 
concluded  that  the  murderers  had  gone  in  that  direction. 
It  was  said  that  those  peace-pretending  Indians  had  har 
bored  the  murderers ;  and  upon  the  slight  evidence  of  a 
trail,  which  might  as  well  have  been  made  by  any  others, 
they  found  sufficient  authority  to  condemn  to  death  all  the 
Indians  in  the  Valley. 

On  Monday,  October  1st,  1855,  Court-week  commenced 
at  Jacksonville,  the  principal  place  in  the  Valley.  People 
from  all  parts  of  the  country  had  thus  an  opportunity  to 
confer  on  the  pending  difficulties.  Among  others  was  a 
Mr.  Jones,  who  presented  his  case  before  several  meetings 
of  the  citizens,  and  made  the  following  statement : 

"  I  live  toward  the  lower  end  of  the  Valley,  seven  miles 
below  the  Indian  Reserve,  and  below  me,  seven  miles  still 
lower  down,  there  is  a  company  of  men  who  have  repeat 
edly  taken  a  number  of  the  Indian  females,  and  are  hold 
ing  them  in  restraint.  The  Indians  have  come  from  the 
Eeserve  to  my  place,  and  say  they  will  not  return  until 
their  wives  and  daughters  are  given  up.  Something  must 
be  done,  for  I  can  not  have  them  around  me  the  whole 
time/' 

As  no  one  appeared  to  be  interested  in  the  troubles  of 
Mr.  Jones  or  his  Indian  Neighbors,  I  felt  a  sympathy  for 


46  A   PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS. 

them,  and  being  aware  that  he  had  applied  to  the  Grand 
Jury,  and  that  they  told  him  it  was  not  their  business,  I 
thought  this  was  a  strange  answer,  because  the  forcible 
holding  of  these  women  was  not  only  subversive  of  moral 
principle,  but  also  against  statute  law  and  special  treaty. 
I  therefore  proposed  to  him  to  apply  to  the  Court,  to  the 
Sheriff,  or  to  the  Indian  Agent,  believing  that  some  one 
of  them  might  have  power  in  the  case. 

About  the  middle  of  the  week  Major  L.  came  into  town 
and  addressed  the  citizens,  informing  them  that  it  was  de 
termined  to  organize  several  companies  and  attack  the 
Indians  at  different  points,  so  that  none  should  escape. 
He  also  said  that  the  Indians  were  in  great  commotion  at 
seeing  the  Settlers  driving  their  cattle  and.  moving  their 
families  away  from  their  encampments.  "I  have  been 
among  them,"  added  the  Major,  "  and  pacified  them  with 
the  assurance  that  we  were  not  going  to  war  with  them  ;" 
and  he  then  coolly  proposed  to  massacre  them  while  off 
their  guard. 

An  hour  or  two  after  hearing  this,  I  again  saw  Mr. 
Jones,  who  communicated  to  me  the  following  report : 

"I  have  spoken  to  the  Judge,  and  he  said  he  did  not 
know  what  to  advise  in  the  case.  I  have  also  seen  the 
Sheriff,  who  says  that  he  can  take  citizens,  or,  if  necessary, 
soldiers,  and  arrest  those  men  for  transgression,  if  he  re 
ceives  orders  from  the  Court,  or  the  Indian  Agent;  but 
without  orders  he  can  do  nothing.  I  have  also  been  to  the 
Agent,  and  he  told  me  to  order  the  Indians  off,  and  if  they 
would  not  go  to  shoot  them." 

I  found  that  Mr.  Jones  was  disposed  to  the  shooting 
plan,  for  he  had  been  with  the  Major,  and  had  agreed  to 
go  down  the  Valley  and  help  muster  a  company  to  act 
in  concert  for  a  general  massacre. 

I  felt  impelled  to  remonstrate  against  such  injustice,  and 
pointed  out  the  probability  of  himself  and  some  of  hia 
neighbors  falling  in  such  an  encounter.  I  reminded  him 
that  the  Indians  were  not  only  more  numerous  than  our 
selves,  but  that  they  occupied  vantage  ground ;  that  when 
attacked  above,  they  would  naturally  run  down  the  Yalley 
and  kill  all  before  them<  I  begged  him  to  remember  that 


A  PLEA  FOB  THE   INDIANS.  47 

it  is  not  Indian  nature,  but  Human  nature,  to  make  a  des 
perate  struggle,  rather  than  give  up  life  and  home.  But 
Mr.  Jones  mounted  his  horse,  and  rode  away,  apparently 
fixed  in  his  determination  for  slaughter. 

Having  no  further  business  in  town  I  returned,  twelve 
miles  up  the  Valley,  to  my  home,  full  of  sad  reflections. 

"  Man's  inhumanity  to  man  makes  countless  thousands  mourn ;" 

and  this  thought  came  home  to  me  more  forcibly  than 
ever,  when  I  beheld,  as  in  a  mirror,  the  mischief  and  mis 
ery  that  would  be  necessary  results  of  such  a  procedure  as 
was  then  in  contemplation.  At  the  same  time  it  was  per 
fectly  clear  to  me,  that  with  only  a  reasonable  share  of 
magnanimity,  justice,  and  kindness,  there  need  be  no 
shedding  of  blood.  Amicable  relations  might  be  estab 
lished,  and  the  Eaces  could  dwell  together  in  peaceful  prox 
imity,  and  to  their  mutual  advantage.  I  was  in  strong  hopes 
that  sober  second  thought  would  have  led  others  to  sim 
ilar  reflection ;  but  I  was  unfortunately  mistaken ;  for,  phren- 
ologically  speaking,  it  seemed  that  every  body's  organs  of 
Combativeness  and  Destructiveness  had  become  excited 
and  inflamed  to  such  a  degree,  that  Conscientiousness, 
Benevolence,  Veneration,  and  all  the  higher  faculties, 
had,  for  the  time  being,  lost  their  dominion.  In  short,  the 
Brute  had  taken  the  place  of  the  Man ;  and  brute  force, 
with  blood,  and  carnage,  such  as  only  the  most  savage 
brutes  delight  in,  became  more  acceptable,  to  many,  than 
the  monitions  of  true  Humanity,  and  the  emotions  of 
Christian  Love. 

I  did  not  know  what  further  measures  had  been  taken 
until  Sunday  morning,  when  I  was  informed  that  a  meet 
ing  of  citizens  had  been  held,  that  two  Methodist  Preach 
ers,  and  other  leading  men,  had  made  speeches,  and  that 
the  unanimous  feeling  was  in  favor  of  the  measures  which 
have  already  been  set  forth.  Monday  morning,  October 
8th,  1855,  was  the  time  agreed  on  to  commence  the  work. 

As  there  was  a  Methodist  Quarterly  Meeting  to  assem 
ble  that  day,  within  two  hours'  ride  of  the  scene  of  the  in 
tended  massacre,  I  hoped  there  would  be  heard  in  that 
religious  assembly  some  expression  of  brotherly  kindness, 


48  A   PLEA  FOR  THE   INDIANS. 

and  charity  for  the  poor  doomed  outcasts  in  their  imme 
diate  vicinity.  Full  of  this  hope  I  attended  the  meeting  ; 
but  the  services  progressed  with  the  rehearsal  of  "  Ex 
periences"  common  on  such  occasions,  until  speakers  be 
came  scarce,  and  the  Presiding  Elder  exhorted  all  who  had 
any  thing  to  say  for  the  Lord,  to  improve  the  time. 

I  arose,  and  spoke  with  all  the  feeling,  and  nil  the 
power  I  had,  in  the  behalf  of  the  poor  Indians.  I  en 
treated  that  Assembly,  who  had  gathered  themselves  to 
gether  in  the  name  of  Christ — whose  whole  life  and  min 
istry  was  a  living  Gospel  of  Loye — to  put  on  the  spirit  and 
the  power  of  Christ.  I  begged  them,  by  every  principle 
of  humanity  and  justice,  to  inflict  no  wrong  upon  the 
helpless.  I  drew  in  strong  colors  the  scenes  that  would 
inevitably  follow  such  an  attack  as  was  meditated.  I 
thought  if  there  was  a  soul,  or  a  heart  in  them,  I  would 
find  it,  even  if  it  could  be  reached  through  nothing  but  their 
own  selfishness.  I  pictured  our  burning  houses,  our  mur 
dered  wives  and  children,  our  silent  and  desolated  homes, 
and  all  the  wrongs  that  would  inevitably  flow  into  that 
crimson:  torrent  they  were  about  to  open.  In  conclusion, 
I  strongly  urged  them,  as  citizens  and  Christians,  to  raise 
a  voice  of  remonstrance,  or  to  call  on  the  Authorities  for 
the  administration  of  justice,  and  thus  avert  the  impending 
calamity. 

No  voice  responded  to  the  appeal,  and.  the  meeting 
closed ;  for  no  one  had  independence  enough  to  speak  his 
thoughts.  But  I  afterward  learned  that  there  were  mem 
bers  of  that  assembly  who  silently  acknowledged  its  force ; 
but  the  pressure  of  public  opinion  prevented  open  ex 
pression.  I  can  not  resist  the  conviction  that  if  the  Pre 
siding  Elder,  with  his  brethren  of  the  Ministry,  and  lead 
ing  members  of  the  Church,  had  taken  a  firm,  manly,  and 
Christian  position,  as  advocates  of  the  Gospel  of  Peace,  the 
horrors  of  that  week,  and  of  the  subsequent  war,  might 
have  been  prevented.  I  am  confirmed  in  this  opinion  by 
one  who  became  penitent  for  the  part  he  had  taken  in 
those  atrocities.  He  solemnly  declared  that  he  was  led 
into  it  by  the  Preachers. 

It  may  be  that  on  questions  of  mere  speculation,  or  of 


A  PLEA   FOR  THE  INDIANS.  49 

Politics,  that  Ministers  and  leading  religious  men  may 
justifiably  keep  silence  ;  but  for  such  to  remain  passive  in 
the  presence  of  murderous  outrage  upon  dependant  help 
lessness,  is  a  virtual  approval,  which  common  humanity 
and  common  sense  must  denounce  as  a  monstrous  incon 
sistency.  The  wrong  and  crime  sanctioned  and  propagated 
by  the  silence  and  inaction  of  that  Assembly  can  never 
be  erased.  It  is  to  be  hoped  that  they  really  were  better 
than  their  actions  would  lead  us  to  suppose.  But  if  their 
moral  courage  and  consciousness  were  really  on  so  low  a 
plane  as  appears  to  be  tlie  case,  still  these  men  must  be 
subjects  of  a  profound  pity,  rather  than  blame,  to  an  en 
lightened  and  benevolent  mind.  They  held  an  awful  re 
sponsibility—not  merely  the  lives  of  unoffending  and 
helpless  fellow-creatures,  but  the  capability  of  development 
— of  Christianity — of  illimitable  progress  and  happiness, 
which  they  might  either  give  or  withhold  from  benighted 
men  and  women,  and  innocent  little  children,  all  of  whom 
would  gladly  have  become  the  partakers  of  benediction ; 
but  they  were  false  to  their  testimony ;  they  violated  theii 
covenant,  and  put  their  Gospel  to  shame.  Soener  or  latei 
they  must  come  to  know  this ;  and  I  leave  them  to  the  cer 
tain  and  unerring  retribution  of  their  own  waking. 

3 


CHAPTER    VII. 

ATROCITIES     GET     COMMON-P  I  AC  E. 

DURING  the  following  week  all  was  intense  excitement 
through  the  length  and  breadtn  of  the  Valley;  but  the 
prevailing  hope  was,  that,  as  the  work  had  commenced,  it 
would  be  effectual,  and  soon  accomplished.  Numerous 
were  the  reports,  as  to  individual  cases,  as  well  as  the 
general  progress  of  the  enterprise  ;  and  it  was  difficult  to 
obtain  the  exact  details.  The  following  is  as  near  the 
truth  as  I  could  ascertain. 

During  the  night  of  Sunday,  the  main  body  of  the  as 
sailants  approached  as  near  to  the  Indians,  on,  or  near  the 
Eeserve,  as  .they  could  without  being  perceived.  They 
were  found  in  several  Eanches  on  the  banks  of  the 
River.  Three  companies  crept  on  their  hands  and  knees 
through  the  chapparell,  so  as  to  obtain  advantageous  posi 
tions.  With  the  first  early  dawn  of  morning  they  poured 
the  deadly  contents  of  their  rifles  through  the  frail  tene 
ments,  under  which  were  sleeping  helpless  men  and 
women,  little  children,  and  nursing  infants.  Let  fathers 
and  mothers  fancy  themselves  and  their  sleeping  babes 
thus  assailed ;  and  they  will  realize  better  than  I  can  de 
scribe  the  horrors  of  that  occasion. 

Being  thus  unprepared  for  war,  and  taken  by  surprise, 
the  Indians  fled  for  shelter  to  the  surrounding  chapparell, 
while  their  assailants  continued,  with  their  revolvers,  to 
despatch  all  they  could  reach.  They  captured  two  or 
three  Indian  women  alive  ;  and  when  no  man  was  in  sight, 
it  being  something  of  a  risk  to  creep  after  them  in  the 
brush,  these  women  were  compelled,  under  threats  of  in 
stant  death,  to  force  out  their  husbands,  and  sons,  and 
brothers,  that  they  might  be  shot  without  danger  to  their 


.       A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS.  51 

destroyers.  It  was  while  thus  employed  that  Major  L., 
already  spoken  of,  received  an  arrow  from  an  unseen  hand, 
which  penetrated  his  lungs,  and  he  fell.  One  of  his  com 
panions  was  also  mortally  wounded  by  an  arrow ;  and  both 
of  them  died  in  the  course  of  two  or  three  days.  Several 
others  were  slightly  wounded,  and  thus  their  cowardly  and 
outrageous  proceedings  were,  for  the  time,  suspended,  if 
we  except  the  amusement  of  stabbing  and  target-shooting 
at  the  bodies  of  the  dead  that  were  left  on  the  ground. 

I  never  ascertained  how  it  was  that  on  this  occasion  the 
Indians  used  only  bows  and  arrows.  It  must  have  been 
that  some  strategy  had  been  used  to  get  possession  of  their 
guns ;  or  else  they  had  not  time  to  load  them ;  for  in  the 
various  reports  of  this  affair,  fire-arms  were  not  mentioned 
in  my  hearing. 

Fort  Lane,  commanded  by  Captain  Smith,  was  within  a 
short  distance.  I  can  not  think  of  this  officer  but  with 
feelings  of  profound  respect.  His  proximity  to  the  In 
dians,  and  frequent  intercourse  with  their  Chiefs,  afforded 
him  facilities  for  knowing  the  nature  and  extent  of  their 
grievances.  "With  the  heroism  of  a  soldier,  and  the  mag 
nanimity  of  a  true  man,  he  steadily,  and  to  the  utmost  of 
the  means  at  his  command,  resisted  the  popular  torrent, 
and  nobly  pledged  his  life  in  protection  of  the  weak  and 
the  defenseless. 

A  detachment  was  sent  from  the  Fort  to  bury  the  dead. 
They  reported  having  found  twenty -eight  bodies,  fourteen 
being  those  of  women  and  children.  But  as  many  dead 
were  undoubtedly  left  in  the  thickets,  and  no  account 
was  taken  of  the  wounded,  many  of  whom  would  die,  or 
of  the  bodies  fhat  were  afterward  seen  floating  in  the 
river,  the  above  must  be  far  short  of  the  number  actually 
killed. 

Of  those  that  escaped,  eighty  were  received  into  the 
Fort ;  and  had  there  been  provision,  and  men  enough  for 
defense,  more  would  have  been  admitted.  For  thus  lean 
ing  favorably  toward  the  poor  fugitives  from  slaughter,  the 
most  bitter  denunciations  were  poured  upon  the  head  of 
the  Captain ;  and  for  many  months  his  name  was  often 
coupled  with  the  most  ignominious  and  degrading  epithets. 


52  A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS. 

In  another  small  valley,  a  few  miles  distant,  there  were 
a  few  Indians  living  on  terms  of  intimacy  with  the  Whites. 
These  were  assailed  by  surprise,  and  most  of  them  put  to 
death,  according  to  previous  arrangement.  As  might 
have  been  expected,  the  survivors  who  were  not  admitted 
into  the  Fort,  fled  beyond  the  settlements  toward  the  coast. 
In  passing  down  the  valley,  early  on  the  morning  of  the 
9th,  they  set  fire  to  thirteen  houses,  and  put  to  death  ten 
or  twelve  white  persons,  among  whom  was  Mr.  Jones,  with 
his  wife  and  family.  It  seems  either  that  his  heart  had 
failed  him,  or  for  some  other  reason  he  had  not  organized 
a  party,  as  arranged  when  he  was  in  town  a  few  days  be 
fore. 

Owing  to  the  firm  stand  taken  by  Captain  Smith,  and 
his  utter  refusal  to  aid  or  countenance  these  self-styled 
volunteers,  a  temporary  check  was  given  to  their  proceed 
ings  ;  and  the  constrained  pugilists  occupied  themselves 
for  a  time  in  taking  care  of  their  wounded,  and  sometimes 
in  short  excursions  for  the  purpose  of  shooting  game  or  In 
dians.  A  number  of  these  unfortunate  people  were  living  as 
lomestics  in  different  families;  but  even  this  could  not  pro 
tect  them.  They  were  in  continual  danger,  and  could  not  go 
abroad  without  being  liable  to  provoke  that  wanton  spirit  of 
destruction,  whose  uncounted  victims  were  left  either  dead 
or  dying,  to  the  final  destruction  of  birds  and  beasts  less 
ferocious  and  less  cruel  than  their  savage  assassins.  Even 
the  sick  and  the  wounded  found  110  mercy  and  no  quarter. 
For  them  there  opened  no  city  of  refuge.  Among  the  cases 
of  this  kind  of  which  I  heard  most  frequent  mention,  I 
will  relate  the  following,  given  to  me  by  one  who  partici 
pated  in  the  affair : 

"We  found,"  said  my  informant,  "  several  sick  and 
famished  Indians,  who  begged  hard  for  mercy  and  ibr 
food.  It  hurt  my  feelings ;  but  the  understanding  was 
that  all  were  to  be  killed.  So  we  did  the  work:" 

From  another  source  I 'learned  the  following  almost  in 
credible  atrocities :  An  Indian  girl  in  the  act  of  fetching 
water  for  her  employers,  was  shot,  and  her  body  thrown 
into  the  creek.  An  Indian  boy,  scarce  in  his  teens,  who 
was  in  the  habit  of  visiting  the  shanty  of  some  miners, 


A  PLEA  FOE  THE  INDIAN'S.  53 

with  whom  he  was  a  great  favorite,  and  always  welcome, 
was  taken  and  hung  upon  the  limb  of  a  tree.  Another 
was  caught  and  had  his  throat  cut.  Two  women  and  a 
man  who  had  taken  refuge  upon  Table  Kock,  which  is  high 
and  very  precipitous,  were  pursued ;  and  it  was  reported 
that  they  had  killed  themselves  by  jumping  down  its  steep 
and  craggy  sides.  But  Dr.  Ambrose,  who  lived  in  the  vicin 
ity,  informed  me  that  they  fell  because  they  were  shot,  and 
could  not  avoid  it.  Their  mangled,  but  yet  living  forms, 
as  they  lay  on  the  loose  rocks  below,  were  so  revolting  a 
sight,  that  many  began  to  declaim  against  such  proceed 
ings  ;  and  several  prominent  citizens  wrote  to  Governor 
Currey  an  account  of  what  was  doing,  upon  which  the  Gov 
ernor  issued  a  proclamation  to  the  effect  that  the  unau 
thorized  companies  who  were  committing  outrages  upon 
peaceable  Indians,  should  immediately  desist,  as  the  Gov 
ernment  would  not  sanction  such  proceedings. 

How  he  came  to  this  resolution  against  the  very  outrages 
which  he  had  himself  sanctioned  and  commissioned,  it  is 
difficult  to  surmise.  Possibly  some  latent  principle  of 
human  kindness,  which  was  drawn  from  his  mother's  milk, 
and  nursed  at  his  mother's  knee,  might  just  then  have  re 
vived  within  him.  It  is  evident  that  he  had  reason  to  be 
shocked  at  the  brutal  outrages,  which  on  every  hand  stared 
him  in  the  face.  There  were  deeds  done  which  ought  to 
have  startled  the  conscience  of  any  man  or  magistrate,  and 
even  policy  might  seem  to  demand  a  hearing. 

Nor  is  this  all.  Let  us  suppose  ourselves  treated  as  the 
Indians  were — that  our  property  was  taken  away,  our 
families  scattered  and  destroyed,  our  people  wantonly 
murdered,  and  ourselves  made  outlaws  in  our  own  land — 
should  we  not  think  that  justice  required  something  more 
than  to  be  informed  that  Government  did  not  approve  of 
it?  Should  not  we  want  and  claim  indemnification  and 
more  secure  protection?  The  fact  of  these  being  a  poor 
people,  and  unable  to  enforce  their  own  claims,  is  surely  no 
sufficient  reason  why  they  should  not  be  protected.  Their 
very  weakness  is  an  appeal  which  a  truly  magnanimous 
people  could  not  resist. 

But  unfortunately  the  Chief  Magistrate  did  not  view  the 


54  A  PLEA  FOE  THE  INDIANS. 

matter  in  this  light;  for  instead  of  legal  proceedings 
against  those  who  had  committed  the  outrages,  or  of  re 
dress  for  the  sufferers,  Governor  Currey  soon  grew  ashamed 
of  his  amiable  weakness.  Humanity  was  out  of  fashion, 
and  he  had  not  manliness  enough  to  wear  its  colors,  for 
fear  that  some  human  adder,  which  he  ought  to  have  felt 
strong  enough  to  set  his  foot  upon,  might  thrust  forth  its 
venomous  tongue  and  hiss  at  him.  This  weakness  is  piti 
ful  ;  but  there  is  much  of  it  to  be  found  in  the  world, 
especially  in  high  places,  and  the  reason  is,  that  the  char 
acter  and  power  of  the  man  are  so  often  set  aside  in  the 
function  and  prerogative  of  the  officer.  In  his  zeal  for 
acting  officially,  he  utterly  forgets  that  he  either  can,  or 
ought,  to  act  humanly' — that  humanity  is,  in  fact,  under 
all  true  law,  the  very  basis  of  his  official  power ;  and  with 
out  it  his  commission  itself  is  null  and  void.  Thus,  in  so  far 
as  he  is  not  humane,  he  is  a  usurper,  invading,  by  assumed 
and  arbitrary  action,  the  very  authority  that  clothes  him 
with  his  power,  since  this  is  avowedly  for  the  good  of  the 
governed.  To  say  that  this  wrong  is  common,  does  not 
justify  or  excuse  it  at  all.  It  is  time  the  people  knew  that 
there  is  no  such  thing  as  divorcing  humanity  from  a  true 
and  righteous  official  power.  In  other  words,  the  respon 
sibility,  character,  and  action  of  the  man,  can  not  be 
separated  from  those  of  the  officer.  Who  ever  attempts  to 
do  this,  will  entangle  himself  in  an  inextricable  mesh  of 
falsehoods  and  wrongs,  and  bring  the  blood  of  the  guiltless 
upon  his  own  head. 

Soon  after  the  proclamation  already  referred  to.  Gover 
nor  Currey  issued  another,  authorising  the  very  men  who 
had  been  denounced  in  the  first  to  organize  themselves  in 
companies,  elect  officers,  and  prosecute  the  war  against  the 
Indians.  We  shall  perceive  the  unfairness  of  these  pro 
ceedings,  if  we  compare  them  with  what  takes  place  be 
tween  different  Nations  on  occasions  of  disagreement. 
There  is  always  investigation.  Their  respective  claims  are 
weighed;  and  war  is  not  begun,  until  every  reasonable 
effort  to  avoid  it  has  been  tried  and  fails.  In  common  law 
the  accused  is  not  condemned  and  punished  without  a 
hearing;  and  if  any  nation,  or  individual,  who  happened 


A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIAN'S.  t55 

to  be  our  superior  in  power,  should  treat  us  on  principles 
the  reverse  of  these,  we  should  esteem  it  unjust  and  tyran 
nical. 

In  defense  of  the  measures  pursued,  it  was  reported  that 
the  Indians  were  false — pretending  to  desire  peace,  but  still 
thieving  and  killing.  But  it  should  be  remembered  that 
they  were  obliged  to  take  whatever  they  could  lay  their 
hands  on,  for  present  subsistence.  The  necessity  of  mutual 
protection  required  them  to  keep  in  company,  so  that  they 
could  not  disperse  themselves  to  fish,  hunt,  and'  gather 
seeds  and  roots,  widely  enough  to  obtain  the  necessary 
supplies.  They  did,  therefore,  only  what  every  other 
people  would  have  to  do  under  similar  circumstances. 
This  they  must  have  felt,  and  justly  too,  was  only  levy 
ing  contributions  on  the  enemies  who  had  impoverished 
them. 

Some  people  were  mean  enough  to  falsify  the  facts  con 
cerning  the  burning  of  the  houses  and  the  killing  of  the 
Whites,  reporting  that  it  occurred  on  the  7th  instead  of 
the  9th  of  October;  and  the  Pacific  Christian  Advocate 
took  advantage  of  this  quibble  to  blame  the  Indians  as  the 
first  aggressors.  It  was  for  the  purpose  of  preventing  the 
odium  of  a  wanton  outrage  on  our  part,  that  the  war  was 
represented  as  a  matter  of  necessity,  and  wholly  defensive 
in  its  character.  That  the  above-mentioned  attack  did  not 
happen  until  the  9th — that  it  was  then  a  simple  act  of  retal 
iation  and  common  justice,  is  susceptible  of  abundant  and 
conclusive  proof. 

If  at  every  point  of  this  melancholy  story,  I  awake  unfav 
orable  reflections  on  the  conduct  of  our  fellow-countrymen, 
it  is  not  because  I  either  will  -or  wish  it.  Would  to  God  that 
I  had  sufficient  authority  to  do  otherwise.  But  feeling,  as 
I  do,  that  the  Indian,  though  of  a  different  Eace,  is  a 
brother  of  the  same  great  family,  I  should  not  be  true  to 
our  common  nature  were  I  to  withhold  a  faithful  statement 
of  the  wrongs  I  have  witnessed.  And  that  I  am  only  giv 
ing  in  detail,  what  has  been  sanctioned  by  the  highest 
authorities,  and  spread  before  the  Nation  in  general  terms, 
the  following  extract  from  the  last  Annual  Report  of  th# 
Secretary  of  the  Interior,  will  show. 


56  A  PLEA  FOB  THE  INDIANS. 

"They  (the  Indians)  have  been  left,  heretofore,  compara 
tively  unprotected  from  violence  and  wrong  inflicted  by 
unprincipled  White  Men,  under  the  influence  of  unbridled 
passion,  or  in  pursuit  of  their  own  venal  ends.  By  such 
men,  unworthy  of  the  name,  they  are  often  cruelly  beaten, 
when  unprotected,  and  not  unfrequently  shot  down,  in. 
mere  wantonness.  The  bloody  revenge,  that  almost  cer 
tainly  follows,  becomes  the  general  theme,  unaccompanied 
by  the  circumstances  of  cruel  provocation  which  gave  it 
birth.  A  border-warfare  springs  up  between  the  resident 
Tribes  and  the  pioneer  Settlers,  who  are  really  trespassers 
on  their  lands ;  and  the  strong  arm  of  the  Government, 
being  invoked  for  their  protection,  wars  take  place,  which 
are  carried  on  at  great  expense,  and  at  the  cost  of  many 
valuable  lives,  retarding  the  progress  of  our  people  by 
rendering  the  condition  of  the  Settler  insecure,  and  clos 
ing,  perhaps,  with  the  annihilation  of  almost  entire  tribes. 
This  process,  the  destruction  of  a  people  of  whom  Provi 
dence  has  given  us  the  guardianship,  originating  in  such 
causes,  is  unworthy  the  civilization  of  the  age  in  which  we 
live,  and  revolting  to  every  sentiment  of  Humanity." 

If  our  fellow-citizens,  generally,  could  realize  the  appre 
ciative  sentiments,  so  truthfully  expressed  by  the  authori 
ties  at  Washington,  surely  this  state  of  things  could  not 
long  exist.  The  impulsive  humanity  of  the  Nation  would 
rise  against  it.  And,  doubtless,  the  reason  why  there  is  so 
little  done,  is,  for  the  want  of  data,  as  to  facts.  The  varied 
statements,  almost  all  of  them  overcharged  with  a  cruel  and 
bitter  prejudice  against  the  Indians,  who  can  not  write,  or 
proclaim  their  own  grievances  by  any  competent  mode  of 
speech,  and  the  fear  of  telling  the  truth  in  those  who  are 
most  intimate  with  them,  on  account  of  the  popular  and 
pecuniary  interests  that  are  brought  to  bear  on  its  sup 
pression  or  misrepresentation,  operate  to  annul  and  render 
abortive  the  humane  provisions  of  the  General  Govern 
ment,  as  well  as  the  zealous  efforts  of  philanthropic  indi 
viduals.  Because  the  majority  of  the  people  in  the  Territory 
do  not  approve  of  these  beneficent  measures,  they  are  not 
carried  out  by  those  who  should  apply  them.  It  is  on  this 
account  that  I  shall  endeavor  to  fill  up  the  outlines,  throw 


A  PLEA   FOR  THE   INDIANS.  57 

in  the  strong  lights  and  shadows,  and  lay  before  the  Nation 
a  more  striking,  and  graphic  picture. 

"We  have  seen,  in,  the  preceding,  some  of  the  general 
causes  of  Indian  wars ;  I  will  now  give  a  brief  narrative  of 
some  of  the  incidents  in  that  of  Oregon,  which  is  scarcely 
yet  over.  And  to  show  that  the  Indians  are  not,  altogether, 
the  savage  demons  they  have  been  represented,  I  will  note 
down  a  few  circumstances  which  were  not  published  in  the 
papers,  but  which  I  nevertheless  believe  to  be  true. 

When  the  Indians  fled  down  the  Yalley,  they  overtook 
two  White  men,  who  had  been  working  high  up  in  a  gulsh, 
and  did  not  know  what  was  going  on  below.  They  kept 
them  prisoners  several  hours,  and  had  resolved  to  make 
special  examples,  and  hang  them,  as  the  Whites  had  hung 
some  of  their  people  a  few  months  previous.  Eopes  were 
already  on  their  necks,  and  in  a  few  minutes  they  would 
have  been  swinging,  when  two  Indians  came  up  and  recogj 
nised  one  of  them  as  a  friend.  They  promptly  represented 
the  fact ;  and  he  was  as  promptly  released  from  the  im 
pending  doom.  The  White  Man  then  begged  for  the  life 
of  his  friend ;  and  as  all  the  circumstances  went  to  show 
that  he  had  not  been  their  enemy,  he  was  also  reprieved  ; 
and  both,  on  promising  not  to  fight  against  the  Indians, 
were  allowed  to  go  their  way.  But  this  high  example  of 
honor  and  generosity  gave  the  Indians  no  advantage  among 
the  ruffians,  who  often  represent  us  in  border  warfare. 
At  another  time  the  Chiefs  called  for  the  Treaty  which  had 
been  made  at  the  conclusion  of  the  last  war,  and  requested 
that  it  might  be  read.  As  article  after  article  was  heard, 
they  appealed  to  the  by-standers,  asking,  "Have  we  not 
kept  this?"  "In  what  have  we  transgressed?"  This 
shows  both  a  sense  of  intellectual  appreciation  and  moral 
obligation.  They  understood  the  facts  in  the  case;  and 
they  knew  that  they  had  been  true  to  them. 
,  On  a  previous  occasion,  when  the  Treaty  was  made,  or 
some  new  arrangements  proposed  with  them,  before  accept 
ing  it,  they  required  of  the  Whites  that  they  should  raise 
their  hands  toward  the  Great  Spirit,  who,  they  said,  lived 
above,  to  witness  their  declaration  that  the  Treaty  should 
be  kept.  This  showed  their  religious  sense,  and  their  high 


58  A  PLEA   FOR   THE   INDIANS. 

idea  of  the  solemnity  and  binding  power  of  an  oath,  and 
also  their  shrewdness,  in  making  the  White  Man  appeal  to 
his  own  God.  They  have,  in  short,  not  only  the.  charac 
ter  and  attributes  of  men,  but  they  represent  a  high  and 
noble  order  of  Humanity. 

That  the  above  is  true,  can  be  shown  by  many  noble 
instances.  A  few  months  previous  to  the  war,  there  were 
among  the  Eogue  Eiver  Indians  a  number  of  men  who,  for 
strong  common  sense,  and  even  superior  intellect,  would 
have  been  conspicuous  in  any  community.  One  of  them, 
known  as  Tipsy,  was  distinguished  for  shrewdness.  An 
other,  called  Elijah,  was  remarkable  for  his  calm  benignity, 
and  his  earnest  efforts  for  peace.  There  were  also  two 
others,  known  to  the  Settlers  as  Joe  and  Sam,  who  were 
pre-eminent  for  their  noble  bearing,  their  statesmanship  and 
eloquence.  Many  of  these  were  killed  in  feuds,  mostly  got 
up  for  that  purpose  by  unprincipled  "Whites.  One  of  the 
two  latter,  when  life  was  ebbing  from  a  mortal  wound, 
called  his  people  round  him,  and  with  all  the  earnestness 
and  affection  of  a  father,  urged  them  not  to  go  to  war ;  but 
at  the  same  time,  advising  that  if  the  "Bad  Bostons J> 
attacked  them,  they  should  not  die  like  dogs,  but  manfully 
defend  themselves,  and  then  fly  to  the  mountains  for 
safety.  He  exhorted  them  not  to  use  the  fire-water ;  for, 
said  he,  "  that  will  make  you  as  bad  as  they."  The  sur 
viving  Chiefs  used  to  quote  his  dying  words,  and  it  helped 
to  keep  their  people  in  subjection, 


CHAPTER  YIII. 

BATTLES    AND    MURDERS. 

No  sooner  had  the  war  been  authorized  by  the  Governor, 
and  some  of  each  political  party  had  got  appointments  of 
office^  and  prospective  profit,  than  arrangements  were  made 
on  the  largest  scale,  which  the  great  number  of  unemployed 
men  and  speculators  could  afford.  As  the  drought  had 
been  continued  late  into  the  Fall,  there  were  scores  of 
Miners  who,  being  deprived  of  work  for  want  of  water, 
found  an  offer  of  employ,  at  such  a  time,  acceptable ;  and 
many,  from  every  point,  were  flocking  to  enrol.  And 
besides  these,  men  who  were  well  to  do,  came  out  from  al 
most  every  family  to  join  the  crusade;  for  it  was  con 
sidered  unpatriotic  not  to  do  so.  They  also  made  a  great 
speculation  in  mules  and  ponies,  gathering  up  every 
creature  of  the  kind,  except  such  as  were  really  good 
and  valuable.  The  more  of  these  animals  a  man  could 
muster,  the  more  fortunate  he  was  considered ;  for  they 
were  appraised  at  various  estimates,  from  $100  to  $350. 
Many  of  these  were  not  worth  more  than  $30  or  $40 ; 
but  if  any  were  lost  or  injured  in  war,  the  owners  looked 
to  Government  for  pay,  to  the  full  amount  of  the  appraisal. 
Oats,  barley,  and  wheat  were  bought  up  at  high  prices — • 
several  thousand  bushels  of  the  latter,  some  of  which  was 
black  with  smut,  bringing  $2  a  bushel.  Farmers,  team 
sters,  and  packers,  were  all  busy,  hauling  grain  and  prov 
ender  a  few  miles  down  the  Valley,  or  along  the  mount 
ains.  In  some  instances,  the  pack-mules  ate  all  they 
carried  before  they  got  to  their  journey's  end,  and  had  to 
go  back  for  more :  for  they  were  hired  by  the  day.  This, 
as  may  well  be  surmised,  was  a  thriving  business ;  but  it 
was  often  said,  that  Uncle  Sam  could  afford  to  keep  fat 
horses. 


60  A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS. 

The  feed  was  crushed  in  the  mill,  and  then  fed  on  the 
ground  so  liberally,  that  several  men,  on  seeing  the  waste 
and  extravagance,  left  the  service,  believing  that  Govern 
ment  would  never  pay  such  unnecessary  expenses.  On 
one  occasion,  as  the  Newspapers  reported,  out  of  over  a 
hundred  horses,  only  thirty  were  able  to  travel  the  second 
day,  the  rest  all  being  badly  foundered. 

Every  thing  vas  done  on  the  assumption  that  all  the 
settlements  in  the  Valley  were  in  danger  from  an  invading 
foe ;  and  every  little  shadow  was  made  available  by  the 
Press  and  Propagandists,  to  keep  up  the  excitement  at 
home,  and  produce  effect  abroad.  Several  Forts  were 
built,  and  crowded  with  .families ;  and  what  was  singular 
is,  that  in  the  thickest  settlements,  in  the  central  part  of 
the  Valley,  there  were  the  most  Forts,  and  the  most  terror, 
while  others" continued  to  occupy  their  houses,  although 
situated  at  the  outskirts,  or  near  the  base  of  mountains — 
the  very  place  for  Indians  to  attack,  if  so  disposed.  The 
latter  doubtless  believed  the  assertions  of  the  Indians,  who 
said  that  they  did  not  consider  themselves  at  war  with  the 
"good  Americans,"  but  only  with  the  "Bostons."  It  may 
here  pertinently  be  asked,  if  our  people  as  generously  made 
exceptions  in  favor  of  good  Indians.  The  Volunteers, 
many  of  whom  were  from  Pike  county,  Missouri,  were, 
from  this  circumstance,  known  throughout  Oregon  and 
California  as  "  Pikes/'  in  addition  to  their  more  common 
soubriquet  of  "  Bostons,"  which  was  solely  applied  to  them 
by  the  Indians  ;  though  from  what  idea,  or  association,  the 
latter  name  was  derived,  I  have  never  been  able  to  im 
agine,  unless  some  villainous  Yankee,  from  the  City  of 
Notions,  earned  for  himself  the  questionable  honor  of  es 
tablishing  it.  As  the  treatment  which  they  have  received 
from  this  class  is  so  different  from  what  they  have  been 
accustomed  to  have  from  the  Fur  Traders,  they  naturally 
enough  entertain  the  idea  that  they  are  a  different  tribe 
both  from  the  latter  and  the  Government  troops  and  Set 
tlers,  with  all  of  whom  they  had  long  lived  on  friendly 
terms. 

Had  the  Indians  been  disposed  to  destroy  and  slaughter 
all  they  could,  there  would  hare  been  hardly  a  house  left 


A  PLEA  FOR  THE    INDIANS.  61 

in  the  Yalley ;  and  it  was  often  a  subject  of  remaik,  that 
they  did  so  little  damage.  And  so  far  as  Volunteers  and 
Forts  were  concerned,  many  thought  that  fifty  determined 
Indians,  bent  on  their  object,  could  have  overthrown  and 
burned  the  whole  in  a  week. 

But  the  fact  is,  there  were  only  a  few  Indians  in  a  body. 
During  the  Fall  and  Winter,  I  made  frequent  enquiries  of 
Volunteers,  who  had  been  in  the  service.  Their  estimates 
of  those  actually  engaged  in  the  Southern  war  were  very 
indefinite,  ranging  from  150  to  400,  including  women  and 
children.  There  were  a  few  small,  scattered  bands,  away 
in  the  mountains,  who  did  all  they  could  to  keep  out  of 
the  way,  and  after  whom  it  was  useless  to  follow. 

The  main  body  of  the  Indians  evidently  acted  with 
the  greatest  discretion,  keeping  entirely  on  the  defensive, 
so  much  so,  that  if  details  were  given,  the  world  might 
wonder  how  a  professedly  Christian  people  kept  up  for 
months,  the  semblance  of  war,  against  a  few  poor,  starv 
ing  men,  destitute  of  homes,  or  stores,  or  allies,  who 
fought  only  for  existence,  and  not  for  territory  or  con 
quest.  And  yet,  against  these  were  arrayed,  for  months 
together,  from  three  to  five  hundred  men.  At  one  time 
there  were  seven  hundred  in  the  field,  armed  and  equipped 
with  all  the  tents,  stores,  munitions,  and  weapons  of 
modern  warfare. 

For  several  weeks  nothing  in  particular  was  done,  ex 
cept  electing  officers,  collecting  materials,  and,  in  various 
ways,  preparing  for  a  comfortable  winter's  campaign.  It 
was  thought  that,  when  the  mountains  were  covered  with 
snow,  the  Indians  would  be  compelled  to  collect  in  the 
Valley  for  shelter  and  subsistence ;  and  then  it  would  be 
easy  to  kill  them  at  a  blow.  Several  small  parties  were 
cut  off,  while  in  search  of  food,  and  it  is  wonderful  how  so 
many  human  beings  found  subsistence  for  months,  har- 
rassed  and  surrounded,  as  they  were,  by  such  powerful 
foes. 

But  the  Newspapers  contrived  to  keep  up  a  kind  of 
sickly  interest ;  for  there  was  no  lack  of  communications 
from  Colonels,  or  Captains,  or  Generals,  in  regard  to  the 
marches,  counter-marches,  and  manoeuvers  of  the  "North- 


62  A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS. 

era"  or  "  Southern  Battalion"  of  the  "  Army."  Occasion 
ally  the  interest  was  heightened  by  accounts  under  the 
caption  of  "  Another  Battle,"  which,  no  doubt,  was  highly 
appreciated  east  of  the  mountains ;  but  we  who  heard  the 
vefbal  statements  of  some  who  participated,  or  who  wit 
nessed  these  affairs,  were  impressed  with  the  belief  that 
"  Another  Massacre"  would  have  been  a  more  appropriate 
heading. 

The  following  are  specimens  of  Battles  during  the  win 
ter.  The  main  body  of  the  Indians  had  selected  for  their 
Head  Quarters  an  angle  in  the  Valley,  known  as  the 
Meadows,  having  high,  precipitous,  and  heavily  timbered 
mountains  on  two  sides,  and  the  Eiver  in  front,  between 
them  and  their  assailants.  There  was  pasturage  in  this 
space  for  the  few  animals  they  owned ;  and  as  they  could 
be  approached  only  by  crossing  the  Eiver,  it  was  con 
sidered  too  much  of  a  Sebastopol  for  our  Braves  to  effect 
an  entrance,  though  canvas  boats,  and  all  the  appurte 
nances  for  the  operation,  were  conveyed  to  the  spot ;  and 
great  anticipations  were  entertained  of  an  early  termina 
tion  of  the  war.  But  this  project  proved  an  entire  failure. 
It  was  then  resolved  to  keep  quiet,  and  watch  until  the 
auspices  were  more  favorable. 

On  one  occasion,  several  Indians  were  discovered  in 
three  canoes,  in  the  river  above  the  Meadows.  A  volley 
was  fired,  killing  all  except  two,  who  swam  to  the  opposite 
side,  and  immediately  shouted  defiance,  telling  the  Bostons 
to  come  to  the  Meadows  and  they  would  fight  them.  This 
affair  was  published  under  the  flourish  of  a  battle,  in 
which  our  troops  were  victorious. 

On  several  occasions  parties  of  warriors  found  means  to 
get  round  and  waylay  a  train  of  pack-mules,  on  which 
occurrence,  the  muleteer  and  escort  generally  fled.  By  the 
time  the  Volunteers  mustered  to  the  rescue,  the  cargo  was 
gone,  and  the  Indians  not  to  be  found.  These  cases  oc 
curred  so  often,  that  the  Volunteers  became  used  to  defeat, 
and  seemed  not  to  care,  or  calculate  upon  any  thing  else ; 
or,  at  least,  they  were  very  careful  about  risking  any  thing 
to  prevent  it.  Battles  were  to  these  doughty  warriors 
sheer  speculations;  and  the  grand  study  was  how  they 


A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS.  63 

should  be  compassed  with  the  least  possible  risk,  and  the 
greatest  possible  advantage — to  themselves.  They  seemed 
to  have  little  or  no  sense  of  morail  responsibility,  either 
toward  the  enemy,  or  the  authorities  under  whom  they 
served.  Patriotism  was  not  only  a  thing  they  never  saw, 
but  it  was  what  they  were  wholly  incapable  of  seeing ;  for 
no  person  can  cherish  this  ennobling  sentiment  in  his  own 
breast,  at  the  same  time  that  he  is  seeking  to  extinguish  it 
in  that  of  another.  They  would  freely  have  spent  the 
last  dollar  in  the  country,  even  though  the  metal  it  was 
made  of  could  be  transmuted  into  iron  chains,  to  bind  and 
enslave  the  Nation.  The  one  purpose  that  was  always 
kept  steadily  in  view,  was  greed,  and  that  of  the  grossest 
character.  The  war  was  likely  to  be  a  profitable  invest 
ment,  with  good  pay,  comfortable  quarters,  and  easy  work. 
To  hurry  matters,  under  such  circumstances,  would  not 
be  good  policy.  Like  the  wary  doctor,  they  did  not  wish 
to  kill  the  patient  too  soon.  In  short,  they  took  special 
care  of  the  Goose  that  laid  the  Golden  Egg. 

The  Indians  being  so  often  successful,  became  aware  of 
their  advantage  when  in  the  Brush ;  and,  on  some  occa 
sions,  they  not  only  maintained  their  position,  but  actually 
gave  pursuit  to  vastly  superior  numbers. 

Among  the  scattering  Tribes  that  were  known  to  be  on 
the  Mountains,  was  a  small  band,  supposed  to  consist  of 
fifty  or  sixty  persons,  who  had  not  been  seen  or  heard  of 
for  months.  The  Chief  was  known  as  Old  John,  an  aged, 
but  at  the  same  time  a  very  sagacious  and  energetic  man. 
He  was  greatly  esteemed  by  his  people,  and  under  ordinary 
circumstances  would  have  commanded  respect  in  any 
community.  Numerous  were  the  reports  concerning  his 
great  age  and  wonderful  exploits.  Some  supposed  he  was 
nearly  a  hundred  years  of  age. 

On  a  certain  occasion,  during  the  first  war,  he,  with 
another  Indian,  had  been  taken  by  a  fraudulent  offer  of 
friendship;  but  on  finding  themselves  entrapped  they 
broke  from  their  captors ;  and  though  thirt}r  rifles  were 
fired  after  them,  the  venerable  man  made  his  escape, 
while  his  companion  fell,  mortally  wounded.  For  months 
afterward  he  never  slept  in  his  tent,  but  always  retired  to 


64  A  PLEA  FOE  THE   INDIAN'S. 

some  secret  spot  in  the  distance.  He  was  faithful  in  the 
observance  of  the  treaty,  and  often  has  lamented  the 
necessity  his  people  were  under  of  retaliating  upon  the 
Whites. 

The  circumstances  that  caused  him  to  leave  the  main 
body  and  fly  to  the  mountains  are  peculiarly  afflictive  and 
aggravating.  One  of  his  daughters  was  taken  possession 
of  by  a  Squatter  Sovereign  ;  and  when  her  husband  went 
to  the  cabin  to  obtain  her  restoration,  he  was  shot  dead  at 
the  door.  This  occurred  long  before  the  war  was  thought 
of ;  and  on  account  of  the  venerable  age  and  noble  bear 
ing  of  the  Chief,  to  whose  tribe  and  family  the  murdered 
man  belonged,  considerable  notice  was  taken  of  the 
circumstance ;  and  some  of  the  citizens  proposed  to  sub 
scribe  ten  dollars  each,  and  raise  a  sufficient  sum  to  indem 
nify  the  Sheriff  against  any  loss  he  might  incur  by  arrest 
ing  the  murderer.  Upon  hearing  of  this,  a  still  greater 
number  set  the  law  at  defiance,  and  declared  he  should 
not  be  punished ;  and  afterward  the  murderer  himself  was 
elected  as  a  Captain  of  the  Volunteers. 

As  the  Chief  perceived  that  this  outrage  was  not  ap 
proved  by  those  holding  authority,  and  as  several  of  the 
most  respectable  citizens  expressed  sympathy,  he  rose 
above  the  brutishness  that  wronged  him  ;  and  in  the  spirit 
of  a  true  philosopher,  sought  to  become  reconciled  to 
what  he  could  not  help. 

But  another  circumstance,  if  possible  still  more  outrage 
ous,  soon  followed  in  the  track  of  the  first.  His  son,  and 
arvother  young  man  of  his  Tribe,  were  accused  of  a  murder 
committed  in  California,  and  a  number  of  Miners  came  over 
to  the  Eeserve,  to  demand  them  for  execution.  Their 
relatives,  as  well  as  the  officers  of  the  Fort,  having  good 
reasons  for  believing  them  innocent,  refused  to  give  them 
up.  Another  party,  of  greater  numbers,  and  well-armed, 
next  appeared,  threatening  to  storm  the  Fort  and  kill  the 
officers,  rather  than  not  have  the  accused ;  and  it  was  fully 
believed  that  there  would  be  a  collision.  Of  all  the  nu 
merous  statements  in  reference  to  this  matter,  I  did  not 
hear  one  openly  expressed  but  what  was  condemnatory  of 
Captain  Smith.  He  was  denounced  as  a  traitor — as  one 


A  PLEA  FOR  THE   INDIANS.  65 

who  was  in  league  with  the  Indians,  and  who  ought  to  be 
shot.  I  know  that  there  were  many  who  thouglit  other 
wise  ;  but  owing  to  the  danger  of  opposing  popular  senti 
ment,  they  yielded  their  right  and  freedom  of  speech,  and 
left  the  Captain  and  the  Accused  to  whatever  might  befall 
them. 

Nevertheless  the  brave  Commander  knew  his  duty ;  and 
nobly  he  discharged  it,  telling  that  infuriated  and  lawless 
band  that  they  should  not  take  those  two  accused  Indians 
but  over  his  own  dead  body.  The  firmness  of  Captain 
Smith  on  this  occasion  deserves  commendation ;  for  it  was 
evidence  of  magnanimity  and  true  heroism  of  the  highest 
order.  This  truly  grand  position  was  not  assumed  in  the 
midst  of  applauding  multitudes,  and  under  circumstances 
that  would  gratify  his  ambition  and  add  to  his  fame.  But 
it  was  taken  in  behalf  of  the  poor  and  the  despised,  and 
in  the  presence  of  contempt  and  threatening  from  those 
who  had  usurped  an  almost  irresponsible  power.  It  was 
at  the  risk  of  life,  with  no  prospect  of  future  honor,  or  the 
world's  applause  ;  and  but  for  this  humble  record,  the 
noble  deed  might  never  have  met  the  public  eye  until  the 
great  day  when  all  secrets  shall  be  made  known,  and  all 
actions  meet  their  reward. 

It  was  finally  arranged  that  the  Accused  should  be 
given  up  to  the  Authorities  of  California,  on  a  requisi 
tion  from  the  Governor  of  that  State ;  that  they  should 
have^a  just  trial,  and  be  fairly  dealt  with,  Captain  Smith 
engaging  to  keep  them  in  custody  until  the  requisition 
could  be  obtained.  The  Chief  and  his  people  were  as 
sured  that  the  young  men  should  be  duly  cared  for,  and, 
if  acquitted,  should  be  returned  to  their  families. 

In  the  course  of  six  or  eight  weeks  the  requisition  ar 
rived  ;  and  by  an  escort  of  troops  the  prisoners  were 
guarded  seventy  miles  to  the  place  of  trial.  They  were 
acquitted,  and  duly  dismissed,  The  soldiers  took  them  in 
charge  for  their  homeward  journey,  when  they  were  set 
upon  by  their  accusers,  and  cruelly  put  to  death. 

There  is  reason  to  believe  that  this  charge  of  murder  was 
only  a  pretense  to  gratify  a  cruel  propensity.  Against  this 
dominating  spirit  neither  innocence  nor  the  laws  could 


66  A  PLEA  FOE  THE  INDIANS. 

famish  a  more  efficient  protection  than  a  spider's  web 
against  the  winter's  storm. 

When  the  aged  Chief  became  acquainted  with  the  fate 
of  his  son  and  his  companion,  he  was  astonished  and  out 
raged,  beyond  the  power  of  language  to  describe ;  for  he 
had  had  full  confidence  in  the  sincerity  and  power  of  the 
Military  to  secure  their  present  protection  and  ultimate 
justice.  He  had  been  impressed  with  the  idea  that  our 
Great  Father,  the  President,  and  all  his  men,  the  Soldiers, 
were  the  Red  Man's  friends  ;  but,  in  the  bitterness  of  grief, 
he  saw  that  they  were  either  unable  or  unwilling  to  save 
them  from  their  enemies.  He  had  long  foreseen  the  gra 
dual  but  certain  destruction  of  his  people ;  but  he  now  saw 
that  the  great  train  of  extermination  was  in  rapid  progress. 
Another  conviction  was  also  forced  upon  him.  He  saw 
that  the  "bad  Bostons"  were  no  more  under  the  control 
of  the  Great  Father,  than  bad  Indians  were  under  his  own. 
And,  doubtless,  the  many  cases  of  insult  and  wrong  which 
he  had  borne  and  witnessed,  and  from  a  repetition  of  which 
he  had  no  guaranty,  crowded  on  his  memory,  inciting  him 
to  vengeance,  and  strengthening  his  resolution  to  be  his  own 
defender.  Will  any  one  who  believes  that  man  has  a  right 
to  defend  himself,  say  that  the  Chief  had  not  the  strongest 
and  truest  reason  for  war?  Compared  with  his  wrongs, 
the  petty  infringements  of  which  our  Fathers  complained 
sink  into  insignificance,  and  become  trivial. 

Accordingly,  he  took  his  people  and  fled  to  the  mount 
ains.  He  knew  the  power  and  number  of  the  Whites  too 
well  to  think  of  sustaining  a  war  with  them ;  and,  there 
fore,  his  chief  object  was  to  keep  out  of  the  way.  But  this 
was  extremely  difficult;  for,  during  several  months  in  the 
year,  the  mountains,  being  extremely  bleak  and  covered 
with  snow,  offered  nothing  for  subsistence.  All  the  prin 
cipal  valleys,  and  many  of  the  smaller  ones,  and  even  the 
mountain  gulshes,  were  occupied  by  Miners  or  Farmers ; 
and  he  could  not  go  far  in  any  direction,  without  danger 
of  being  seen  ;  and,  moreover,  such  a  number  of  persons, 
without  stores  of  provision,  could  not  long  subsist  in  any 
given  place  away  from  their  fishing-grounds ;  for  game  was 
not  plenty,  and  berries  were  scarce. 


A  PLEA  FOR  THE   INDIANS.  67 

The  fact  that  Old  John  and  his  men  were  still  at  large, 
filled  tne  Settlers  with  constant  terror,  for  they  were  among 
the  most  skillful  and  courageous  of  all  the  Tribes.  No  one 
felt  safe  in  traveling  from  home,  while  many  were  antici 
pating  that  at  some  evening  twilight,  or  early  dawn,  the 
startling  war-whoop  would  be  heard  in  the  Valley,  and  the 
people  would  wake  to  be  massacred  in  the  light  of  their 
own  burning  dwellings ;  and  they  best  knew  what  good 
reason  they  had  to  expect  such  treatment. 

Numerous  companies  had  been  out  in  pursuit  of  Old 
John  ;  and  although  no  one  knew  that  either  he  or  his  men 
had  done  a  single  hostile  act  during  the  several  months  of 
war,  he  was  marked  for  destruction.  No  thought  was 
taken  of  the  wrongs  he  had  suffered,  or  of  the  reason  of  his 
absence ;  but  he  was  commonly  spoken  of  afe  an  implacable 
Savage,  and  the  most  dreaded  of  all  the  Enemy.  It  was 
often  said :  "If  we  could  but  kill  Old  John,  all  would  be 
safe." 

The  following  incident  will  show  how  near  a  considerable 
portion  of  his  Tribe  were  to  being  taken.  In  the  early  part 
of  January,  1856,  a  company  of  men  went  up  the  mountains 
in  search  of  the  Old  Chief.  They  had  made  their  encamp 
ment  in  a  convenient  place ;  and  for  several  days  sent  out 
scouts,  two  or  three  in  a  company,  in  all  directions.  On 
one  occasion,  two  of  these  scouts  fell  in  with  a  fresh  trail ; 
and  following  it  up,  came  to  a  cabin.  Gladly  would  they 
have  concealed  themselves;  but  they  were  perceived  by 
the  occupants,  and  had  no  alternative  but  to  assume  cour 
age,  and  make  the  best  of  their  discovery.  They  found  the 
tenement  in  the  occupation  of  several  Indian  women  and 
children.  Therefore  they  pretended  to  be  Miners  in  search 
of  gold  ;  and  to  ensure  the  confidence  of  the  women,  they 
made  them  an  offer  of  the  two  mules,  with  their  provisions. 
This  liberality  was  induced  by  the  fear  that  the  Warriors, 
who  could  not  be  far  off,  might  suddenly  return  and  kill 
them,  They  persuaded  the  women  to  go  with  them  to 
camp,  promising  to  make  a  treaty  of  peace.  They  were 
soon  met  by  the  returning  Warriors,  and  their  lives  were 
spared  through  the  intercessions  of  the  women. 

They  found  that  this  cabin  consisted  of  logs,  and  wa? 


68  A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS. 

also  covered  with  the  same,  upon  which  were  brush  and 
earth.  It  was  guarded  by  a  deep  ditch,  with  slanting  cuts 
for  the  rifles,  so  that  they  could  defend  themselves,  and  be 
in  tolerable  safety  from  the  shots  of  an  Enemy. 

On  the  report  of  the  Scouts  at  their  camp,  it  was  resolved 
to  get  a  reinforcement,  and  take  the  place  by  storm.  This 
was,  undoubtedly^  for  some  special  object  rather  than  ne 
cessity,  since  the  Indians  were  anxious  for  peace,  and  had 
spared  those  whom  they  had  in  power,  on  promise  of  a 
treaty  being  made.  Accordingly,  "a  Battalion  of  the 
Army,"  "with  a  great  number  of  spirited  citizens  from 
Jacksonville" — I  quote  from  the  papers  of  the  day — 
"  marched  to  the  attack." 

Bat  upon  approach,  it  was  found  that  they  could  not  get 
within  the  range  of  Kifles,  without  danger ;  for  you  must 
know  that  these  refined  Warriors  had  an  especial  dainti 
ness  in  regard  to  the  manner  of  their  being  killed ;  and 
they  themselves  particularly  disliked  to  be  shot.  This,  in 
connection  with  their  common  treatment  of  the  Indians, 
shows  what  respect  they  had  for  the  Grolden  Eule,  and 
why  so  many  high  Clerical  and  Canonical  Functionaries 
should  have  patronized  them, 

But  to  return  to  the  battle.  As  one  of  the  besiegers  fell 
dead,  and  others  were  wounded,  without  making  any  im- 

Eression  on  the  besieged,  it  was  resolved  to  send  to  Fort 
ane  for  a  cannon,  and  blow  them  up  with  bombshells. 
Pursuant  to  this  resolution,  on  the  afternoon  of  the  follow 
ing  day,  the  cannon  was  duly  poised  ;  and  its  awful  echoes 
boomed  over  the  mountains  and  ravines,  rousing  the  terri 
fied  Indians,  who  had  never  heard  the  like  before.  But 
although  the  firing  was  continued  until  the  curtain  of 
Night  fell  and  closed  the  scene,  only  one  shell  entered  the 
cabin,  killing  two,  and  wounding  others.  The  roar  of  bat 
tle  then  ceased,  but  only  to  be  resumed,  with  greater 
vigor,  in  the  morning ;  and  the  weary  troops,  some  of 
whom  had  been  on  guard  more  or  less  for  four  days,  once 
more  slept  upon  their  arms. 

The  number  of  the  Besiegers  was  variously  estimated  at 
from  200  to  400,  including  the  "  spirited  citizens ;"  that  of 
the  Besieged  was  about  30,  including  Women  and  Children. 


A  PLEA   FOR  THE  INDIANS.  69 

The  morning  sun  arose ;  and,  lo !  it  was  soon  discov 
ered  that  the  Indians  had  retreated  beyond  the  reach  of 
bombshells,  carrying  along  all  their  arms  and  ammunition, 
leaving  only  the  deserted  logs,  instead  of  human  bodies, 
for  the  balls  and  bombs  to  fall  upon  and  scatter.  This  is 
conclusive  proof  of  one  thing,  if  not  two.  It  shows  either 
that  the  White  Soldier-men  slept  very  soundly,  or*that 
they  winked  at  their  escape. 

As  might  be  expected,'  there  was  a  strong  reaction 
among  the  "  spirited  citizens,"  at  this  general  explosion  of 
their  brilliant  achievements,  past  and  prospective.  They 
put  a  bombshell  in  their  cannon,  and  it  came  out  a  bubble ; 
and,  to  their  dismay,  they  found  that  even  women  and 
little  children  were  too  wide  awake  for  them.  In  short,  they 
were  quite  mistaken  when  they  thought  that  Indians  had 
no  more  sagacity  or  self-respect  than  to  lie  still  and  sleep 
in  the  night,  only  to  be  bombarded  and  blown  up  in  the 
morning.  This  state  of  things  was  particularly  annoying, 
in  view  of  the  fact  that  the  snow  was  melting  from  the 
mountains,  and  the  Indians,  who  had  been  long  confined 
in  the  Meadows,  would  soon  be  at  large. 

And  what  was  still  more  alarming,  the  Indians  had 
gained  caution  by  suffering,  skill  by  practice,  and  courage 
by  success  ;  and  they  were,  in  the  beginning  of  1856,  aftei 
months  of  continuous  war,  better  prepared  for  its  prosecu 
tion  than  when  it  first  commenced.  They  had  intercepted 
several  pack  trains,  from  which  they  had  obtained  plenti 
ful  supplies  of  arms  and  ammunition.  But  what  tended 
more  than  all  other  things  to  give  them  power  was  a  sense 
of  right.  While,  on  the  other  hand,  there  was  a  great  lack 
of  the  moral  element,  as  a  basis  for  the  Volunteers  to  act 
upon.  Many  of  them  were  far  from  being  assured  of  the 
righteousness  of  their  cause,  and  not  a  few  who  had  at  first 
sanctioned  the  war,  and  aided  in  its  operations,  became 
convinced  that  the  Indians  were  in  the  right;  and  rather 
then  stand  in  the  wrong  against  them,  they  had  left  the 
ranks,  and  thereby  forfeited  their  claims  for  previous  serv 
ice.  It  was  owing  to  causes  of  this  kind  that  so  little  was 
done  during  the  winter,  for  notwithstanding  the  newspaper 
accounts  of  "  victories  gained  and  battles  won,"  it  was  no- 


70  A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS. 

torious  that  the  Enemy  were,  in  reality,  the  victors,  and 
that  the  rifles'  crack  from  a  few  Indians  in  ambush,  would 
cause  large  bodies  of  well-armed  and  mounted  men  to  fly 
for  safety.  And  the  more  candid  and  reflecting  portion  of 
the  community  could  not  avoid  the  conviction,  that  even 
the  exploits,  which  had  been  so  sonorously  lauded  in  the 
papers,  were,  in  view  of  the  disparity  of  numbers  and 
materials,  as  well  as  the  objects  held  in  view,  any  thing  but 
creditable  to  the  victors.  .  It  is  easily  to  be  seen,  that  men 
who  had  sold  themselves  to  the  work  of  common  assassins 
— who  had  engaged,  for  so  much  a  month,  to  shoot  down, 
or  murder,  as  they  might,  a  few  poor,  famished,  and  starv 
ing  people,  who  were  everywhere  calling  for  peace  and 
crying  for  mercy,  must  have  been  singularly  deficient  in 
that  essential  element  of  all  true  success — an  invincible 
consciousness  of  Eight. 

It  may  well  be  questioned,  whether  there  is  to  be  found 
in  the  annals  of  civilized  Nations,  any  thing  to  compare 
with  this  page  of  our  own  history — that  a  war  should  be 
continued  for  months,  against  a  handful  of  starving,  sup 
pliant  people,  who  were  constantly  sueing  for  peace ;  and, 
in  return,  demanding  nothing  but  protection  I  What  Sav 
age  ever  did  the  like  ?  None,  but  the  White  Savages  of 
our  Border  Settlements. 

That  most  of  the  Yolunteers  were  on  a  low  plane  of  de 
velopment,  with  all  the  selfish  or  animal  passions,  either 
highly  active,  or  paramount,  is  the  only  excuse  that  can  be 
'offered ;  and  this,  humiliating  as  it  may  at  first  appear, 
when  we  look  at  it  philosophically,  offers  a  sufficient  ex 
cuse  for  all  bad  actions.  Men  do  not  choose  to  have  their 
lowest  nature  in  the  ascendant — they  do  not  choose  to  do 
evil ;  but  when  they  are  incapable  of  perceiving  good,  how 
can  they  avoid  it  ?  An  evil  destiny  is  thrust  upon  them  ; 
and  in  fulfilling  its  laws,  they  must  work  out  evil.  Grad 
ually  to  ameliorate,  and  finally  to  subdue  these  unfavor 
able  conditions,  that  now  enslave  and  deprave  so  large  a 
portion  of  the  Kace,  must  henceforth  be  the  work  of  an 
enlightened,  liberal,  and  benevolent  philosophy. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

EFFORTS  IN  BEHALF  OF  PEACE. 

DURING  one  period  of  the  winter's  campaign,  the  "Vol 
unteers  were  more  dreaded  by  the  Settlers  than  the  In 
dians.  Property  was  wantonly  destroyed,  cattle  killed, 
and  Jacksonville  fired ;  and  while  the  stores  were  burning 
the  merchants  were  robbed.  Yet  those  merchants  dared 
not  openly  complain,  partly  through  fear  of  private  re 
venge,  and  partly,  lest  any  public  exposition  relative  to  the 
management  of  the  war,  might  jeopardize  the  profitable 
contracts  in  which  they  were  all  more  or  less  concerned. 
That  many  of  the  Volunteers  were  both  sorry  and  ashamed 
of  the  part  which  they  took  in  these  disgraceful  proceed 
ings  is  nothing  more  than  true ;  and  if  they  have  been 
thus  led  from  a  low  plane  of  thought  and  action  into  a 
higher,  they  may  be  able  to  retrieve  the  wrong  they  have 
either  committed,  or  meditated,  by  a  corresponding  will  to 
do  good. 

The  state  of  affairs  referred  to  above,  induced  the  cit 
izens  living  on  Bear  Creek  to  pass  a  unanimous  resolve, 
calling  for  a  meeting  in  Jacksonville,  to  be  holden  on  the 
22d  of  January,  1856,  to  consider  the  propriety  of  nego 
tiating  .for  peace,  and  ending  the  war  by  treaty ;  and  a 
committee  was  appointed  to  attend  to  the  publication  of 
the  Call. 

But  the  Editor  of  the  Sentinel,  a  Southern  Man,  and 
wholly  one-sided  in  his  sympathies,  published  in  connection 
with  it  a  statement,  that  he  did  not  know  of  a  man  in 
Jacksonville  who  desired  a  meeting  for  such  an  object. 
As  there  was  no  other  paper  published  in  the  Yalley,  the 
Sentinel  was  the  only  public  mouth-piece ;  and  hence  its 
statements  had  great  influence  in  determining  public  action. 

Before  proceeding  further,  it  is  proper  to  observe  that, 


72  A  PLEA   FOR  THE  INDIANS. 

although  in  the  succeeding  pages  of  this  Narrative  the  first 
person  singular  appears  in  frequent  prominence,  it  is  a 
subject  of  regret  rather  than  egotism.  The  writer  would 
have  had  far  more  pleasure  in  recording  action  in  concert 
with  his  fellow-citizens,  than  to  stand  alone  against  a  mul 
titude.  And  were  it  not  for  the  hope  that  a  detailed  ac 
count  of  the  course  by  which  such  disastrous  results  have 
been  brought  about  would  help  to  prevent  their  recur 
rence,  silence  and  oblivion  would  have  been  my  choice. 
But  when  I  saw  burning  houses,  and  homeless  families, 
and  heard  the  cry  of  orphans  whose  parents'  blood  had  un 
necessarily  moistened  the  earth — and  all  for  want  of 
honor  and  fairness  toward  a  weaker  race,  both  conscience 
and  humanity  impelled  me  to  action.  And  when  I  con 
sidered  that  it  is  by  a  perverted  use  of  our  national  strength, 
and  the  expenditure  of  millions  of  public  treasure,  by 
which  a  people  are  being  destroyed  whom  interest  and 
duty  bind  us  to  preserve,  I  was  bound,  not  only  by  a  sense 
of  right,  but  by  a  feeling  of  patriotism,  both  as  a  man  and 
a  citizen,  to  enter  my  protest  in  the  strongest  terms. 

Perceiving,  as  I  did,  that  the  Editorial  already  alluded 
to,  had  disappointed  the  earnest  desire  for  peace,  which 
had  been  openly  expressed  by  many  Citizens,  I  visited  and 
conversed  with  a  number  of  different  persons  in  various 
parts  of  the  Valley,  all  of  whom  agreed  with  me,  that  the 
war,  so  far  as  Volunteers  were  concerned,  was  a  mere 
farce,  a  boys'  play,  that  ought  to  be  stopped ;  but  there 
were  two  circumstances  that  made  it  a  difficult  thing  to 
bring  about.  The  first  of  these  was  the  pecuniary  interests 
involved.  There  had  not  been  for  a  long  time  a  steady 
pursuit  of  any  profitable  objects  of  industry.  Nearly  all 
the  labor,  and  produce,  and  capital  of  the  country  had  been 
employed  in  the  prosecution  of  the  war ;  and  to  secure  in 
demnity  from  the  public  treasure,  it  -was  necessary  to  be 
pretty  unanimous  in  regard  to  the  justness  of  their  claims, 
which  would  rest  directly  on  the  righteousness  of  the  war. 
Hence,  to  dispute  these  points  at  home,  would  be  to  jeop 
ardise  their  interests  at  Washington;  and  the  disputant  was 
sure  of  the  ill-will  of  those  around  him,  and  might  reason 
ably  calculate  on  something  worse. 


A  PLEA  FOR  THE   INDIANS.  73 

In  the  next  place,  a  sense  of  shame  and  mortified  pride, 
in  those  who  had  been  so  long  active  participants  in  the 
campaign,  made  them  wish  to  retrieve  their  honor  by 
some  more  successful  experiments  of  bravery  and  general 
ship  than  they  had  yet  exhibited.  They  felt  how  un 
favorably  they  would  appear  before  the  country — after 
spending  and  losing  so  much,  to  be  overcome  by  a  few 
starving  savages,  whom  they  despised  as  being  less  than 
human.  There  was  also  another  class  of  upright,  worthy 
citizens  who  argued  that  u  we  must  whip  them  first,"  in 
order  that  the  Treaty  might  be  kept.  To  my  mind  this 
last  argument  was  inexpressibly  abhorrent;  and  I  re 
gretted  it  the  more  because  it  came  from  those  who  were 
highly  esteemed.  Whipping,  in  this  case,  signified  to  kill 
so  many  that  the  survivors  would  become  discouraged  and 
helpless,  and  finally  yield  to  their  fate.  I  could  not  but 
regard  this  as  adding  cruelty  to  injustice,  and,  as  the  worst 
means  that  could  be  adopted  toward  a  people  who  were 
already  smarting  under  conscious  wrongs. 

It  is  obvious  to  all  who  reflect  much  on  this  subject,  that 
the  only  true  way  of  living  in  amicable  relations  with  the 
Indians,  is  to  elevate  them — to  cultivate  their  self-respect 
and  inspire  them  with  the  love  of  truth  and  virtue.  If  we 
could  impart  to  them  a  true  civilization,  and  an  acceptable 
religion,  we  should  place  the  Indians  in  a  condition  in 
which  they  could  perceive  and  choose  judiciously  for 
themselves ;  but  to  discourage  and  destroy,  surely  will  not 
do  this ! 

Being  deeply  impressed  with  the  truthfulness  of  these 
views,  I  felt  anxious  to  have  the  public  meeting,  which 
many  citizens  had  called  for.  I  had  been  assured  by 
several  prominent  men  in  the  Valley,  that  they  would  be 
present,  and  plead  for  peace. 

Accordingly,  on  the  morning  of  the  22d  of  January, 
1856,  I  rode  down  to  Jacksonville,  and  found  the  town  in 
the  greatest  commotion.  News  had  j  ust  arrived  that  Cap 
tain  Bruce  and  company,  in  pursuing  a  party  of  Indians, 
had  dismounted  and  entered  the  Timber*  on  foot.  The 
Indians  had  managed  to  surround  the  men,  and  get  pos- 

*  Woods. 
4 


74  A  PLEA  FOB  THE  INDIANS. 

session  of  their  horses ;  and  volunteers  were  now1  being 
mustered  to  go  to  the  rescue. 

This  incident  was,  in  the  estimation  of  some,  an  ad 
ditional  reason  why  the  meeting  should  be  had;  but 
others  used  it  as  an  argument  for  no  meeting.  While 
these  conflicting  sentiments  were  being  canvassed  in  the 
streets  and  stores,  I  engaged  the  largest  room  that  could 
be  found,  and  procured  the  printing  of  hand-bills,  calling 
for  a  meeting  at  the  Eobinson  House,  at  2  o'clock,  P.M.  In 
posting  them  round  town,  such  was  the  opposition,  that 
several  were  torn  down  before  my  face. 

The  meeting  gathered  slowly.  It  was  not  till  after  3 
o'clock  that  many  were  present ;  and  I  had  to  regret  the 
absence  of  every  one  of  those  who  had  specially  promised  to 
attend.  Several  speeches  were  made  in  favor  of  war ;  and 
then  I  endeavored  to  give  a  brief  account  of  its  origin,  its 
management,  and  its  present  and  probable  results ;  of  the 
advantage  of  peace,  and  the  ease  with  which  it  might  be 
established. 

A  Keverend  Doctor,  from  New  Orleans,  argued  for  con 
tinued  war,  and  utter  extermination ;  and  another  gentle 
man  agreed  to  make  a  treaty,  but  only  to  massacre  all  the 
Indians  as  soon  as  they  had  signed  it.  My  remarks,  in 
cluding  several  interruptions,  occupied  nearly  two  hours ; 
and  when  the  vote  was  taken,  the  party  who  were  for  war 
promptly  spoke,  while  some  of  those  who  were  on  the 
opposite  side  refused  to  vote  either  way.  So  the  meet 
ing  broke  up,  with  but  one  voice  raised  in  behalf  of 
peace. 

On  leaving  the  house,  a  gentleman,  who  was  to  me  a 
stranger,  addressed  me,  saying,  "You  are  the  only  man 
who  dares  speak  his  sentiments  openly ;  if  you  will  furnish 
me  with  a  copy  of  your  speech  in  writing,  it  shall  be  for 
warded  to  the  Indian  Department,  at  Washington." 

A  few  days  afterward  I  met  with  two  men  returning 
from  the  Camp.  They  informed  me  that  they  had  been 
with  the  company  to  relieve  Captain  Bruce.  The  Indians 
had  made  good  their  retreat,  with  the  horses.  In  pursuing 
them  they  overtook  two  women,  one  of  them  having  an 
infant.  The  officers  commanded  that  they  should  not  be 


A  PLEA  FOB  THE  INDIANS.  75 

hurt.  Nevertheless  they  were  clubbed  to  death ;  and  the 
child  was  taken  by  the  heels  and  had  its  brains  dashed  out 
against  a  tree.  These  men  declare  that  they  had  left  the 
service  and  would  forfeit  their  claims  for  the  time  they 
had  lost,  rather  than  sanction  such  atrocities.  It  was 
afterward  ascertained,  that  the  Indians  avenged  them 
selves  by  hanging  two  white  women,  whom  they  held  as 
prisoners. 

This  is  another  illustration  of  the  suicidal  character  of 
war.  Had  those  women  been  protected  by  such  peaceful 
conditions  as  are  founded  upon  a  sense  of  equal  justice, 
they  might  now  have  filled  some  useful  sphere  in  our 
midst,  with  great  comfort  and  joy  to  their  respective  fami 
lies  and  friends;  and  if  the  spontaneous  goodness  that 
prompted  those  men  to  leave  in  disgust,  were  properly  ex 
ercised,  and  truly  developed  in  all  our  private  relations  and 
public  enactments,  how  soon  would  swords  be  beaten  into 
ploughshares,  and  our  spears  converted  into  pruning  hooks ; 
for  then  Nations  would  not  rise  against  Nations,  neither 
would  they  learn  war  any  more. 


CHAPTER  X. 

CONTINUED  EFFORTS  FOR  PEACE. 

TOWARD  the  latter  end  of  February,  the  small  bands  of 
Indians  who  had  been  scattered  among  the  mountains,  began 
to  suffer  extremely  for  want  of  food.  The  red-berries  and 
acorns  were  exhausted ;  and  the  nutritious  roots  were  not 
sufficiently  grown  to  be  of  service.  Many  were  worn  out 
with  fatigue,  and  severely  frost-bitten  from  unusual  ex 
posure.  Hence  they  were  under  the  necessity  of  congre 
gating  near  the  Kiver,  in  order  to  obtain  supplies  of  fish. 
Volunteers  were  stationed  at  different  points,  for  the  pur 
pose  of  cutting  off  these  bands;  and  the  reports  of 
"Battles,"  with  varied  success,  became  more  frequent  and 
exciting. 

Old  John  and  his  Tribe  were  now  occasionally  heard 
from — especially  in  connection  with  a  pack  train,  which, 
according  to  the  reports,  he  had  captured.  Several  China 
men  were  also  killed,  in  their  different  encampments,  and 
robbed  of  their  gathered  gold.  It  was  surmised  by  some, 
however,  that  much  of  this  should  be  credited  to  the 
White  Savages  that  infested  the  country,  in  the  shape  of 
freebooters,  who  regarded  no  class,  and  scrupled  at  no 
means,  when  plunder  could  be  obtained. 

It  was  known  that  there  was  a  small  band  on  Bute 
Creek,  under  the  Chief,  Jake ;  and  a  party  was  sent  to 
hunt  them  out.  They  were  found  in  a  state  of  great  des 
titution,  having  previously  had  all  their  winter  provisions 
and  camp  utensils  destroyed.  They  were  taken  prisoners ; 
but  the  victors  not  agreeing  how  to  dispose  of  them,  they 
were  allowed  to  go. 

The  same  party  found,  in  one  place,  evident  signs  of  its 
having  been  the  scene  of  an  Indian  battle.  Among  other 


A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS.  77 

things,  they  found  two  dead  Indians,  over  whom  was 
spread  a  wagon-cover,  known  to  have  belonged  to  the 
Teamsters,  who  were  killed  in  the  Fall,  as  has  been  already 
related.  It  was  afterward  ascertained  that  the  Tribe  just 
liberated,  hoping  to  conciliate  the  favor  of  the  "Whites, 
had  made  war,  and  killed  all  who  had  been  engaged  in 
that  affair.  It  was  said  they  were  actually  on  their  way  to 
give  themselves  up,  when  they  were  met  by  the  same 
company  of  Volunteers  who  had  captured  and  released 
them  a  few  days  previous.  As  it  had  become  unpopular 
to  kill  women,  they  ordered  the  females  aside  while  they 
shot  the  men,  numbering  eighteen.  This  cruel  and  de 
liberate  butchery  occupied  the  space  of  two  hours — a 
period  of  inconceivable  horror  and  anguish  both  to  the 
waiting  victims  and  their  friends  who  were  kept  within 
reach  of  their  struggles  and  cries. 

It  being  well  known  to  General  Wool,  that  the  Indians 
of  Southern  Oregon  had  not  desired  war,  and  were  anx 
ious  for  a  treaty,  provided  they  could  have  protection,  he 
was  not  in  haste  to  enlist  the  Eegulars  in  its  prosecution ; 
neither  could  any  treaty  be  made  until  the  Volunteers  were 
withdrawn ;  for  the  Indians  held  them  in  utter  contempt, 
and,  on  several  occasions,  challenged  them  to  a  fight. 

The  Settlers,  whose  farming  and  other  business  opera 
tions  were  all  suspended,  were  becoming  seriously  embar 
rassed,  and  anxious  for  a  termination  of  hostilities.  But 
there  were  other  classes,  such  as  Contractors,  Speculators, 
and  Volunteers,  who  were  making  large  calculations  upon 
General  Lane's  efforts  in  relation  to  the  Public  Purse. 
They  presumed,  on  Governor  Currey's  assertion,  that  the 
war  was  just.  It  was,  therefore,  natural  for  such  to  think 
that  all  would  be  paid,  and  to  be  in  no  hurry  about  stopping 
the  accumulation  of  these  valuable  claims.  The  Peace 
Party  were,  furthermore,  discouraged,  by  being  often  told 
that  no  treaty  should  be  regarded;  that  peace,  or  no 
peace,  Indians  should  be  killed.  Pursuant  to  these  mur 
derous  resolutions,  when  General  Palmer,  early  in  the 
spring,  arranged  to  have  those  who  were  in  the  protection 
of  Fort  Xiane,  removed  to  the  Reserve  on  the  coast,  there 
was  an  open  threat  to  massacre  them  on  the  way ;  and  no 


78  A  PLEA  FOB  THE  INDIANS. 

sooner  had  they  left  the  Fort  than  a  man  rode  up  and  fired 
among  them,  killing  one  of  their  number.  It  was  found 
necessary  not  only  to  increase  the  strength  of  their  guard, 
but  to  arm  the  Indians  in  self-defense. 

At  the  time  these  Indians  were  removed,  there  were  two 
other  tribes,  under  the  Chiefs  Limpy  and  George,  who 
were  anxious  to  make  treaty,  and  to  be  taken  under  Gov 
ernment  protection.  They  begged  earnestly,  as  fathers  and 
husbands,  for  the  safety  of  their  wives  and  little  ones  — 
entreating  that  they  might  go  on  the  Eeserve.  But  the 
Officials,  whose  business  it  was  to  ratify  their  plea,  yielded 
to  the  demands  of  those  who  were  continually  crying, 
"  We  must  whip  them  first."  So  these  poor  people,  with 
their  sick,  their  wounded,  their  infants,  and  their  aged, 
were  left  to  be  hunted  for  months  longer,  over  mountains 
and  valleys,  by  what  General  Palmer  styled  a  set  of  "law 
less  vagabonds." 

I  was  in  hopes  that  remonstrance  from  abroad  would 
command  attention.  For  this  purpose  I  wrote  a  number 
of  Letters  to  persons  in  official  stations,  and  to  the  Public 
Press,  both  in  Oregon  and  the  States.  But  as  the  sequel 
will  show,  there  is  some  reason  to  believe  that  they  were 
suppressed  in  the  Post  Office,  and  few  of  them  reached 
their  destination. 

As  the  following,  addressed  to  the  Sentinel,  was  made 
one  of  the  grounds  of  accusation  by  which  I  WAS  con 
demned  at  a  public  meeting  convened  for  the  purpose,  I 
will  here  present  it  entire  : 


PRECINCT,  Jackson  Co.,  0.  T. 
"  ME.  EDITOR  : 

"  In  all  cases  of  dispute,  whether  between  Individuals 
or  Communities,  candor  and  justice  demand  that  both 
sides  should  have  a  hearing.  We  are  now  not  only  in  dis 
pute,  but  in  destructive  war  ;  and  as  only  one  party  has 
yet  been  heard  through  the  Newspapers  of  the  Country, 
will  you  permit  a  friend,  in  behalf  of  the  other  side,  to 
occupy  your  columns  with  a  few  thoughts  on  the  relative 
position  of  the  parties  ? 


A  PLEA  FOB  THE  INDIANS.  79 

"  The  grand  question  is.  Are  we  right  in  the  origin,  in 
the  conduct,  and  in  the  object  of  this  war? 

"I  will  not  undertake  to  answer  either  by  direct  argu 
ment  or  assertion,  but  by  a  few  other  questions,  which 
every  Eeader  in  the  Valley  can  answer  for  himself. 

"  1st.  In  regard  to  the  homes  we  occupy,  and  the  lands 
we  claim,  did.  the  Indians  make  a  voluntary  surrender,  and 
receive  a  fair  equivalent  ? 

"2d.  Were  the  Indians  first  in  personal  assault,  and 
contemptuous  treatment  ? 

"  3d.  Were  the  Indians  first  in  possessing  themselves  of 
wives  and  daughters  not  their  own  ? 

"4th.  Were  they  first  to  induce  and  spread  abroad  a 
loathsome  disease,  afflicting  numbers  with  misery  and 
death? 

"  If  the  answer  to  these  questions  is  to  be  drawn  from 
past  occurrences,  and  existing  facts,  it  will  be  an  emphatic 
No.  And  the  unpleasant  truth  stares  me  in  the  face,  that 
the  guilt  and  shame  of  this  war  rest  on  others  rather  than 
the  Indians. 

"  All  will  admit,  that  if  the  enormous  wrongs  which  the 
preceding  questions  imply,  had  been  committed  against  us, 
we  should  deem  it  ample  cause  for  hottest  war. 

"  If,  then,  the  Indians  did  actually  combine  for  war,  it 
is  no  sufficient  reason  for  treating  them  as  outlaws,  worthy 
only  of  destruction ;  but  rather,  as  the  injured  party,  we 
should  extend  to  them  our  sympathy  and  kind  considera 
tion.  The  position  they  have  assumed  is  not  one  of  ex 
clusively  savage,  or  Indian  nature ;  but  it  can  be  main 
tained  on  the  common  ground  of  Humanity  itself,  and, 
as  such,  it  should,  at  least,  have  our  consideration  and 
respect.  Their  proceedings  are  the  result  of  natural  in 
stinct,  not  of  choice,  but  of  necessity.  They  fight  for  ex 
istence,  not  for  conquest. 

"  Some  of  our  people  speak  contemptuously,  and  not 
only  call  the  Indian  man  a  '  Buck,'  but  they  hunt  him  as 
game,  or  destroy  him  as  vermin.  If,  under  such  treat 
ment,  he  should  tamely  submit,  and  cower  like  a  con 
quered  brute,  or  crouch  like  a  miserable  slave,  we  might 
have  a  pretense  for  disputing  his  kinship.  But  as  a  Man, 


80  A  PLEA  FOE  THE  INDIANS. 

of  like  passions  and  aspirations  with  ourselves,  he  spurns 
his  oppressors ;  and  by  deeds  of  daring,  he  proclaims 
the  sentiment  of  our  own  noble  sires :  *  Give  me  liberty  or 
give  me  death/  He  has  not  only  sustained  his  part  of 
this  unhallowed  war  with  courage  and  promptitude,  but 
with  discretion  and  prudence.  If  destruction  and  carnage 
had  been  his  object,  he  could  have  burned  our  villages, 
laid  waste  our  homes,  and  slaughtered  our  people,  almost 
without  limit.  But  he  has  refrained  from  provoking,  un 
necessarily,  the  spirit  of  revenge.  He  has  done  only  just 
enough  to  show  that  he  is  a  man,  and  will  avenge  his 
wrongs,  so  long  as  he  has  an  arm  to  do  it.  Hence,  every 
so-called  Indian  depredation  is  but  the  echo,  the  response, 
to  one  committed  against  him. 

"  It  is  a  fact  not  to  be  disputed,  that  the  Indians  of  this 
Valley,  notwithstanding  a  long  series  of  insults  and  mur 
ders,  have  adopted  our  dress,  imitated  our  manners,  learned 
our  language,  courted  our  friendship,  and  feel  honored  by 
our  approbation. 

"  It  is  a  fact,  that  they  did  not  leave  our  families  and 
settlements  until  repulsed  by  unkindness,  and  driven  away 
by  fear. 

"It  is  a  fact,  that  for  months  before  the  war,  they  ap 
plied  again  and  again  for  justice  and  protection. 

"  It  is  a  fact,  that  even  after  the  first  cruel  onslaught  of 
their  assailants,  in  this  war,  numbers  who  were  in  their 
power  were  allowed  to  go  unhurt. 

"  Let  us  now  inquire  who  are  the  parties  among  us  that 
sanction  the  war.  We  shall  admit  that  many  of  the  in 
dividuals  may  be  good  men  and  true ;  yet,  from  the  nature 
of  the  case,  their  action  is  nevertheless  sadly  out  of  har 
mony  with  the  honor  and  interests  of  all  concerned.  Our 
Government  is  based  on  principles  of  justice  and  equality ; 
and  its  constituted  Authorities  are  sworn  to  restrain  the 
wicked,  and  protect  the  innocent.  If  honest  patriots  have 
joined  this  crusade,  it  must  have  been  without  due  con 
sideration  ;  for  it  can  not  be  denied  that,  at  its  commence 
ment,  annihilation  to  the  Eed  Man's  Eace  was  the  firm 
resolve,  and  the  ruling  sentiment.  Under  this  dire  influ 
ence,  the  blood  of  the  innocent  has  been  made  to  flow  like 


A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS.  81 

water.  And  not  only  has  the  warrior,  tendering  submis 
sion,  and  begging  for  quarter,  been  shot  like  a  dog,  but 
the  wailing  captive,  the  prostrate  sick  and  wounded,  the 
defenseless  mother,  and  the  tender  babe,  have  alike  fallen 
victims  to  the  relentless  rage. 

"  And  what,  it  may  well  be  asked,  is  all  this  for  ?  Where 
is  the  necessity  for  such  extreme  measures?  "Who  can 
point  to  a  single  crime  of  the  Indians  that  has  not  been 
committed  in  a  greater  degree  among  ourselves  ?  Why, 
then,  this  threat  against  'Eed  Skins'  that  has  grown  so 
common  among  us?  Surely  the  color  of  the  skin  is  not  a 
proof  of  crime,  and  therefore  should  not  be  made  to  incur 
a  penalty. 

"  Neither  are  the  Eaces  constitutionally  the  enemies  of 
each  other.  Numerous  are  the  cases  in  which  they  are 
united  by  the  tender  ties  of  love  and  parentage ;  and  many 
voices  from  their  midst  may  address  those  among  us  by  the 
endearing  titles  of  the  closest  consanguinity ;  so  that  liter 
ally  they  are  l  bone  of  our  bone,  and  flesh  of  our  flesh ;' 
and  the  Scripture  is  clearly  illustrated  that  'God  hath 
made  of  one  blood  all  Nations  to  dwell  on  the  face  of  the 
whole  Earth.' 

"  We  have  laws  that  are  good  enough,  and  officials  in 
abundance ;  and  the  only  reason  I  can  imagine  for  their 
inefficiency  is,  the  practical  denial  of  the  first  and  funda 
mental  principle  upon  which  our  Government  was  origin 
ally  based — '  that  all  men  have  an  inalienable  right  to  life, 
liberty,  and  the  pursuit  of  happiness.'  Hence,  when  Lust, 
or  Convenience,  prompt  the  baser  passions,  these  sacred 
rights  are  disregarded ;  and,  in  the  name  of  Liberty,  the 
worst  form  of  despotism  is  seeking  to  crush  the  weaker 
Eaces  of  mankind.  We  need  not  wonder  that  the  Indians 
are  hostile,  and  resist  this  aggression.  We  may  destroy, 
or  drive  them  from  their  domains,  but  we  can  not  annihil 
ate  their  Eights ;  and  the  attempt  to  do  so  may  kindle  a 
fire  for  our  own  destruction. 

"  But  the  argument  of  some  is,  We  can  not  live  with  In 
dians—the  two  Eaces  can  not  agree — and  the  like.  To 
such  I  would  say,  Stay  at  home.  The  Indians  did  not 


82  A  PLEA   FOR  THE   INDIANS. 

send  for  you  here.     There  is  room  enough  in  the  world 
for  all,  and  that  without  crowding.     Go  your  ways. 

"  We  think  all  the  Colored  Eaces  our  inferiors,  and,  pos 
sibly,  they  may  entertain  the  same  opinion  of  us.  It  is 
said  that  the  Celestials  call  us  '  Outside  Barbarians ;'  and  the 
Kamtschatkans,  in  their  houses  of  snow,  think  we  are  in  a 
sad  condition  to  require  so  many  superfluities.  But  since 
the  Creator  gave  us  these  varied  predilections  and  dif 
ferences,  they  surely  should  be  no  cause  for  contempt  and 
mutual  destruction. 

"  From  whatever  point  of  view  we  look  at  the  lamentable 
difficulties  in  which  we  are  at  present  involved,  we  can  see 
but  one  true  cure,  and  that  is  the  spirit  of  the  Golden  Eule, 
embodied  both  in  Law  and  Usage,  and  faithfully  adminis 
tered,  irrespective  of  color  or  grade,  otherwise  than  as  they 
provide,  that  the  ignorant  and  weak  should  have,  on  that 
account,  a  more  special  claim  on  the  strong  and  the  wise. 

"  The  advantages  of  such  a  course  over  the  present  sys 
tem  of  mutual  murder,  are  so  great  and  palpable,  that  the 
slightest  reflection  should  elicit  earnest  efforts  for  its  im 
mediate  adoption.  Only  think,  sir,  how  the  evil  passions 
would  be  curbed,  and  how  all  the  social  and  domestic  vir 
tues  that  beautify  and  elevate  society,  would  thus  be  un 
folded  with  a  finer  culture;  and,  instead  of  making  the 
Indian  an  outcast  and  an  object  of  hate,  we  should  experi 
ence  the  richest  pleasure  in  aiding  the  development  of  his 
highest  nature,  and  literally  realize  that  it  is  *  more  blessed 
to  give  than  to  receive.' 

"  I  trust,  sir,  that  the  importance  of  these  considera 
tions,  at  the  present  time,  will  be  deemed  sufficient  apology 
for  the  desire  I  feel  of  having  them  presented  to  the  public 
through  the  columns  of  the  Sentinel 

"  Kespectfully  yours, 

"JOHN  BEESON." 

The  above  was  read  in  the  presence  of  the  Editor,  but 
he  objected  to  publishing  on  the  ground  that  none  of  the 
Papers  of  the  Territory,  and  no  respectable  number  of  the 
Citizens,  would  endorse  such  sentiments ;  and,  moreover, 
he  should  be  in  danger  of  raising  a  mob  around  himself,  if 


A  PLEA  FOR  THE   INDIANS.  83 

he  did  so.  I  offered  to  relieve  him  of  the  responsibility  by 
procuring  the  signatures  of  two  of  the  principal  men  in  the 
Valley,  to  a  request  for  its  publication.  On  these  terms  he 
agreed  to  publish  ;  but  two  days  afterward,  on  presenting 
the  request,  with  the  signatures,  as  agreed,  he  utterly  re 
fused,  pretending  to  do  so  out  of  regard  for  my  safety,  ob 
serving,  at  the  same  time,  that  my  life  was  in  jeopardy — 
that  many  were  the  private  threats  against  me,  and  that  the 
publication  of  the  letter  would  be  like  throwing  a  fire 
brand  among  dry  stubble. 

I  had  perceived,  for  a  week  or  two,  an  unusual  constern 
ation  and  seriousness  wherever  I  went.  Even  my  friends 
appeared  afraid  of  being  friendly,  when  I  met  them,  giving 
me  but  a  respectful,  and  sometimes  distant  recognition.  I 
was  not  aware  of  the  immediate  cause,  but  supposed  that, 
as  I  had  been  the  previous  year  a  Candidate  on  the  Kepub- 
lican  ticket  for  the  Territorial  Legislature,  and  had,  on  sev 
eral  public  occasions,  applied  the  principles  of  the  Platform 
against  Slavery  and  the  war,  and  in  behalf  of  Indians'  and 
Negroes'  rights,  as  well  as  our  own,  I  had  thereby  caused 
great  offense,  and  some  threatening.  I  had  also,  at  the 
late  nominations,  introduced  a  series  of  Kesolutions  in  the 
same  spirit  as  the  foregoing  letter.  I  knew  that  the  intro 
duction  of  these  subjects  before  the  public,  was  especially 
obnoxious  to  the  party  in  favor  of  Slavery,  and  to  the 
Democratic  Candidates,  who  were  then  stumping  the  coun 
try  for  votes ;  and  even  some  who  were  with  me  in  senti 
ment,  thought  that  it  was  indiscreet  to  speak  against  the  war, 
and  thereby  invalidate  the  claims  for  indemnity.  But  my 
conscience  told  me  otherwise.  I  felt  that  silence  was  con 
sent,  and  that  gold  gained  by  war  was  the  price  of  blood. 
I  thought  that  if  others  had  a  right  to  the  freedom  of 
speech  in  favor  of  war,  I  had  an  equal  right  to  the  same 
freedom  in  behalf  of  peace.  If,  under  the  circumstances, 
I  had  failed  to  exercise  that  right,  I  should  have  lost 
my  self-respect,  and  have  been  unworthy  of  the  name  and 
the  privileges  of  a  freeman.  I  do  not  wish  to  reflect  on 
those  of  my  fellow-citizens  who  differed  from  me  in  opin 
ion.  I  only  deprecate  the  attempt  of  some  to  prevent  free 
dom  of  expression,  and  the  passive  submission  of  others  to 


84  A  PLEA  FOB  THE  INDIANS. 

sucli  false  assumptions.  Had  there  been  a  free  Press,  and 
a  free  flow  of  honest  thought,  it  is  hardly  possible  that  the 
war  could  have  taken  place. 

As  might  be  expected,  the  refusal  of  the  Editor,  and  his 
remark  about  my  life  being  in  jeopardy,  as  well  as  the  dis 
tant  bearing  and  anxious  look,  so  visible  in  the  countenan 
ces  of  many  friends,  was  not  calculated  to  inspire  me  with 
over  confident  feelings  of  personal  safety. 

I  had  read  the  tract  on  the  Murders  Committed  in  Cali 
fornia  from  1851  to  1856,  in  which  an  extract  from  the 
District  Attorney  of  San  Francisco  is  quoted,  wherein  he 
says  that  for  four  years  previous  to  '51,  1,200  murders 
had  been  committed  in  the  city  of  San  Francisco.  And 
any  one  familiar  with  the  history  of  the  great  Pacific  Em 
porium,  since  that  time,  will  readily  agree  that  crime  has 
not  diminished  with  the  increase  of  population.  It  was 
stated  by  the  public  press  at,  or  near  the  close  of  1855, 
that  500  murders  had  been  brought  to  their  notice  during 
the  year  just  then  past.  The  compiler  of  the  work,  from 
an  examination  of  the  papers,  declared  himself  confident  that 
"  not  less  than  5,000  murders  had  been  committed  in  Cali 
fornia  during  the  last  six  years."  "With  such  facts  as  these 
before  the  public,  can  any  one  wonder  at  the  great  number 
of  men  that  are  missing  of  whom  their  friends  never  hear 
any  account? 

I  knew  that  I  wa£  surrounded  by  many  in  the  Volunteer 
ranks  who  were  from  the  same  State,  and  in  the  same  class, 
with  the  same  cause  for  inflicting  personal  violence  as  those 
who  had  been  so  rampant  in  Kanzas.  I  knew  that  the 
same  spirit  by  which  the  lamented  King,  Editor  of  the 
San  Francisco  Bulletin,  had  been  assassinated,  and  by  which 
a  Sumner  in  the  Senate  of  the  United  States  had  been 
struck  down,  was  the  ruling  genius  of  Southern  Oregon.  I 
knew  that  law  had  lost  its  supremacy,  and  human  life  its 
sacredness ;  and  for  weeks  I  never  stepped  from  my  door 
but  I  realized  the  probability  of  being  saluted  by  the  rifle's 
crack,  and  the  bullet's  whiz,  from  the  thick  brush  that 
fringed  the  creek,  within  a  few  rods  of  my  house.  Indians 
would  have  had  the  credit,  or  the  blame ;  and  my  name, 


A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS.  85 

with  my  life,  would  have  sunk  in  oblivion  as  a  stone  sinks 
in  the  mighty  deep. 

But  I  saw  no  ready  means  of  "escape.  The  only  two 
ways  out  of  the  Valley,  north  and  south,  were 'narrow- 
passes  between  lofty  mountains  and  dense  forests ;  and 
both,  for  many  miles,  were  traversed  by  angry  White  Men 
and  hostile  Indians. 

But  God  was  my  refuge.  In  him  I  trusted ;  and  my 
wife  and  son,  like  true  spirits,  alive  to  probabilities,  yet 
persistent  in  right,  were  prepared  for  results.  I  was,  there 
fore,  free  from  embarrassments,  with  nothing  to  deter  me 
from  present  duty ;  and  my  only  all-pervading,  and  ever- 
present  fear,  was  that  I  should  not  perform  it  rightly. 

Often,  when  alone,  I  felt  the  deepest  anguish,  and  an 
expression  of  spirit  that  words  can  not  express.  I  did  not 
fear  death,  for  that  would  have  been  a  relief;  but  when  one 
or  another  of  the  neighbors  would  come  in,  as  often  hap 
pened,  with  fresh  news  of  cruelties,  I  felt  the  wrongs  in 
every  fiber  of  my  system,  accompanied  by  a  deep  and 
thrilling  conviction  that  they  ought  not — and  need  not  be. 
Then  I  thought  of  the  generous  sympathies  of  our  people, 
with  a  strong  conviction  that  these  wrongs  were  only  to  be 
known,  in  order  to  be  arrested  and  repaired.  The  question 
then  was,  "  What  shall  I  do  ?"  The  conditions  demanded 
action ;  for  I  knew  that  such  feelings  could  not  have  been 
given  as  a  personal  torture,  only  to  consume  me  in  silence 
and  solitude. 


CHAPTER    XL 

THE     ESCAPE. 

I  DID  not  refrain  from  my  usual  habits  of  public  inter 
course  ;  but  I  took  the  precaution  to  keep  as  much  as  pos 
sible  on  the  main  road.  On  one  occasion,  in  riding  to 
Jacksonville,  I  fell  in  company  with  a  rough,  savage-look 
ing  man,  riding  a  jaded  mule.  He  had  in  his  belt  a  re 
volver  and  a  large  knife,  and  carried  a  rifle  on  his  shoulder. 
In  conversation  he  said  he  had  shot  many  an  Indian,  and 
should  not  hesitate  to  shoot  a  White  Man  that  would  side 
with  a  Eed  Skin. 

I  reined  up  my  beast,  so  as  to  keep  by  his  side,  resolv 
ing  that  if  he  shot  me,  it  should  not  be  in  the  back.  But 
I  have  some  reason  to  hope,  that  before  we  arrived  in  town, 
he  indulged  more  kindly  feelings. 

As  I  have  already  stated,  I  wrote  many  letters,  and  had 
they  been  admitted  by  the  papers  to  which  they  were 
addressed,  the  Public  would  long  ago  have  been  fully 
apprised  of  the  principal  incidents  of  the  war ;  and,  I 
think,  it  would  have  been  much  earlier  closed,  and  thus 
many  of  its  calamities  avoided.  It  was  for  this  end  that  I 
wished  for  the  facts  to  be  known.  I  could  not  keep  quiet 
and  see  wrongs  of  such  a  magnitude  perpetrated,  and 
approved  by  high  Officials;  but  it  took  three  or  four 
months  to  get  letters  to  New  York,  and  back  again,  so  I 
wrote  for  a  paper  in  San  Francisco. 

Toward  the  latter  end  of  May,  1856,  two  gentlemen 
came  to  my  house  one  afternoon  and  invited  me  to  attend 
a  public  meeting,  which  they  said  was  gathered  in  the 
neighborhood,  but  for  what  purpose  they  did  not  know. 
Without  hesitation  I  went  with  them. 

Upon  arrival  at  the  Meeting,  the  Chairman  was  reading 


A  PLEA  FOR  THE    INDIANS.  87 

from  the  New  York  Tribune  the  substance  of  a  letter  that  I 
had  sent  in  the  Spring,  after  which,  the  Editor  of  the  Sen 
tinel  said  he  had  also  a  letter,  in  manuscript,  by  the  same 
author ;  and,  upon  the  reading  of  it,  I  perceived  it  was  one 
I  had  sent  to  the  Post  Office  on  the  1st  of  May,  for  the 
San  Francisco  Herald.  It  contained  a  brief  History  of  the 
war,  and  was  written  in  answer  to  Governor  Currey's  Proc 
lamation,  in  which  he  had  said  that,  "the  Indians  com 
menced  the  war  without  just  cause."  The  Editor  made  an 
effort  at  an  effective  speech ;  and  to  prove  what  an  enemy 
the  writer  was,  to  the  interests  of  the  community,  he  said 
that  he  had  offered  him,  for  publication,  a  Plea  for  the 
Indians. 

Several  others  addressed  the  meeting,  some  of  them  in 
the  most  violent  and  denunciatory  manner.  A  Captain 
Smith,  who  had  been  in  the  first  open  engagement,  as  de 
scribed,  page  42,  undertook  to  show  that  the  Indians  began 
the  war,  yet  he  defeated  his  own  purpose,  in  the  most  sig 
nal  manner.  He  described  the  approach  to  the  Fort,  and 
how  the  women  and  children  ran  into  the  Brush.  He  told 
how  he  swore  at  the  men,  abusively  charging  upon  them 
the  theft  of  the  horse,  repeating,  as  he  did  so,  the  very 
oaths  he  had  used.  By  his  own  account  his  party  com 
menced  the  assault,  by  insults  which  no  men,  who  believe 
in  self-defense,  could  justify  themselves  in  submitting  to. 
In  short,  his  whole  account  exhibited  such  a  brutal,  wanton 
spirit,  that  sober-minded  citizens  were  disgusted  and  filled 
with  horror,  and  even  his  own  party  were  ashamed  of  him. 

After  the  speeches,  a  Committee  was  appointed  to  draft 
Eesolutions.  At  this  point  I  arose,  and  begged  leave  to 
speak  in  reply  to  what  had  been  said ;  for  I  learned  that 
the  two  who  had  given  me  the  invitation  were  a  Com 
mittee  appointed  for  the  purpose  ;  and  as  all  the  speeches, 
and  the  only  object  of  the  meeting,  had  been  to  denounce 
my  course,  I  felt  that  I  had  a  right  to  speak.  But  the 
Chairman  insisted  that  I  was  out  of  order — that  the  object 
of  the  Meeting  was  not  to  hear  me  speak,  but  to  pro 
nounce  judgment  on  what  I  had  written.  I  demanded 
that  the  Letter  should  be  sent  according  to  the  address, 
and  held  myself  responsible  to  law  for  the  truth  of  its  con- 


88  A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS. 

tents.  The  Meeting  was  numerously  attended.  I  believe 
that  all  m j  immediate  neighbors  were  present ;  but  for  the 
most  part  they  were  passive  listeners.  I  knew  that  their 
privats  sentiments  were  with  me ;  and,  though  silent,  I  felt 
assured  that  their  moral  influence  would  be  used,  in  case  of 
assault,  to  save  me  from  personal  injury  ;  but  they  could 
not  speak  in  defense  of  the  right  of  free  speech,  or  the  in 
tegrity  of  the  postal  department.  Pecuniary  interests  were 
at  stake  ;  and  the  credit  of  their  claims  demanded  silence. 
Finding  that  I  could  not  be  heard,  I  left  the  Meeting. 

The  Committee  presented  a  series  of  Kesolutions,  which 
the  Sentinel  said  were  unanimously  adopted.  The  chief 
of  them  was  to  the  effect,  that  the  article  in  the  Tribune 
and  the  manuscript  Letter  were  the  products  of  a  low 
and  depraved  intellect,  and  that  it  was  the  duty  of  every 
good  citizen  to  stop  their  circulation.  The  Meeting  ad 
journed,  to  assemble  in  another  place  the  following  day, 
to  hear  the  Democratic  Candidates,  and  to  take  further 
action  on  the  same  subject. 

The  following  evening,  a  friend  sent  me  word  that  the 
excitement  was  getting  fearfully  high.  Several  companies 
of  Volunteers  were  discharged.  They  encamped  near  my 
house ;  and,  as  I  was  informed,  some  of  the  most  reckless 
among  them,  were  determined  on  vengeance. 

It  had  occurred  to  me,  a  few  days  previous,  that  I  had  a 
work  to  do  in  behalf  of  the  Indians,  and  that  my  life 
would  be  spared  to  accomplish  it.  At  the  same  time  the 
idea  came  of  going  to  Fort  Lane  for  protection.  Accord 
ingly  I  made  immediate  preparation,  by  writing  out  my 
will;  and  before  daylight  passed  away  I  went  into  the 
grove,  and  with  something  of  a  sad  heart  looked  over  lots 
and  fences  which,  during  the  last  three  years,  I  had  labored 
so  hard  to  arrange,  and  to  take  a  last  look  at  my  cows  and 
cattle,  and  favorite  mare,  which  had  brought  me  from  Il 
linois  to  Oregon,  and  ever  since  had  served  me  so  faith 
fully. 

None  but  rny  wife  and  son  knew  of  the  project.  \Ve 
spent  the  evening  in  as  pleasant  and  cheerful  conversation 
as  circumstances  would  admit.  My  affectionate  dog,  Tow- 
ser,  seemed  to  be  possessed  with  a  kind  of  instinctive  sym- 


A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS.  89 

pathy  in  our  feelings;  for  instead  of  lying  in  his  usual 
place  under  the  stoop,  he  was  not  satisfied,  but  to  be  in  the 
house,  and  by  my  side. 

At  eleven  o'clock,  in  company  with  my  son,  I  bade  fare 
well  to  wife  and  home.  The  night  was  extremely  dark. 
"We  arrived  at  the  Fort  just  at  daylight ;  and  then  I  took 
leave  of  my  son,  now  in  his  twentieth  year,  from  whom  I 
had  scarcely  been  separated  a  day  before  since  he  was  born. 

Captain  Underbill  was  somewhat  aware  of  the  state  of 
affairs,  and  readily  granted  me  an  escort  of  Dragoons. 
After  refreshment,  and  three  or  four  hours'  rest,  I  was 
again  on  horseback,  with  my  Gruards,  and  on  the  way  for 
the  Willamette  Valley.  "We  staid  the  first  night  at 
Evans's  Ferry.  The  house  and  premises  were  protected 
by  log  pickets;  and.  it  was  considered  a  strong  Fort. 
We  took  an  early  start  in  the  morning,  past  many  Volun 
teers,  who  were  encamped  upon  the  road.  The  Regulars 
seemed  to  regard  them  with  contempt,  and  avoided  friendly 
recognition. 

About  noon  I  parted  with  my  Gruard,  as  I  had  got  be 
yond  the  circle  of  excitement ;  and  it  was  necessary  for  the 
soldiers  to  get  back  to  Fort  Lane  to  spend  the  night. 

I  traveled  on  alone  for  seven  days,  until  I  reached  Sa 
lem,  the  capital  of  the  Territory.  I  had  many  pleasant 
feelings,  and  occasionally  some  sad  reflections.  I  asked  my 
self,  "  What  is  my  crime,  that  I  should  be  a  fugitive  from 
home?  Have  I  transgressed  the  Laws,  or  violated  the 
Constitution  ?  Have  I  done  any  thing  contrary  to  justice 
and  Truth,  or  which  the  feelings  of  Humanity  have  not 
clearly  indicated?"  I  reviewed  my  words  and  acts  during 
my  residence  in  Oregon  ;  and  my  conscience  bore  witness 
that  I  had  uniformly  tried  to  do  right.  I  might  have  done 
better,  but  not  in  a  different  direction  from  the  one  I  had 
taken.  I  felt  humbled  at  the  thought  that,  with  the  clear 
light  and  strong  impulses  which  had  controlled  my  actions 
I  had,  nevertheless,  failed  to  convince  my  fellow-citizens  of 
their  correctness;  and  especially  was  I  humbled  at  the 
thought  of  military  protection  against  threatened  violence. 

But  in  the  midst  of  these  cogitations  the  thought  oc 
curred  that,  perhaps,  all  this  will  be  for  the  best,  and  if 


90  A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS. 

my  course  is,  indeed,  in  accordance  with  wisdom  and 
truth,  it  will  ultimately  commend  itself  to  the  intellect  and 
conscience,  not  only  of  the  people  of  Oregon,  but  to  the 
people  of  the  whole  country.  And  it  may  be  that  the 
mutual  degradation  of  the  Races,  and  the  horrors  resulting 
from  war  may  become  apparent  to  the  view  of  all,  until  at 
length,  by  common  consent,  relations  of  peace  and  good 
will  may  be  estableshed,  to  be  broken  no  more  forever. 

With  these  thoughts  I  took  courage,  and  felt  that  there 
was  an  object  worth  living  for,  and  that  my  special  busi 
ness  now  was  to  exalt  and  make  manifest  those  principle? 
of  love  and  brotherhood,  which  are  stronger  than  cannon, 
and  more  powerful  than  armies  for  the  subjugation  of 
savage  nations,  and  for  the  elevation,  not  only  of  Indians, 
but  of  Americans,  and  all  Humanity ; — yes,  for  all  human 
ity.  Love  is  a  universal  panacea  for  all  the  social  wrongs 
that  curse  the  world ;  and  Reformers  may  devise,  Religion 
ists  may  preach,  and  Legislators  may  make  laws ;  but  until 
love,  or  a  kind,  considerate  regard  for  the  interests  of  every 
branch  of  the  human  family,  is  the  most  prominent  element 
of  all  their  plans,  their  preaching  and  their  laws,  they  wiD 
fail  of 'success;  for  "love  is  the  fulfilling  of  the  law." 


CHAPTER   XII. 

RUNNING-  THE  GAUNTLET  WITH  PATRIOTIC  AND  CHRISTIAN 

EDITORS. 

PURSUANT  to  the  great  purposes  of  my  life  and  destiny, 
a  more  determined  idea  of  which  had  been  evolved  by  my 
late  misfortunes,  I  resolved  to  call  on  the  different  Editors, 
and  upon  the  Governor,  and  other  leading  men  in  the  Ter 
ritory.  Only  in  proportion  as  the  fountain  is  pure  can  the 
waters  it  sends  forth  be  healthful,  and  refresh  and  beautify 
the  Earth ;  so  only  in  proportion  as  the  Public  Press  and 
Civil  Functionaries  are  imbued  with  moral  truth,  can  they 
promote  social  happiness  and  the  public  good. 

"With  this  in  view,  I  called  on  a  Keligious  man,  from 
whom  I  had,  some  time  previous,  received  a  letter  of  sym 
pathy  and  encouragement,  in  which  he  said  he  prayed 
three  times  a  day  for  the  Indians,  and  that  war  might 
cease. 

As  he  was  on  terms  of  intimacy  with  Governor  Currey 
and  had  known  me  for  years,  I  solicited  of  him  an  intro 
ductory  note  to  the  Governor,  which  was  promptly  prom 
ised.  But  before  morning,  when  I  started,  the  good  man's 
Caution  overcame  his  Conscience;  and  so  he  expressed 
himself  as  feeling  that  I  was  right — that  he  prayed  to  the 
Lord  for  my  success,  but — but — BUT — he  did  not  think  a 
note  would  be  of  any  service  to  me ;  and  moreover  it  might 
be  of  prejudice  to  himself,  and  the  Church  of  which  he  was 
a  member ;  and  therefore  he  begged  to  be  excused. 

I  could  not  help  smiling  at  the  dilemma  of  my  good 
friend ;  and  yet  I  felt  sorrow  that  so  prayerful  a  Christian 
was  not  free,  and  had  not  courage  to  do  what  his  con 
science  and  judgment  told  him  was  right. 

Upon  my  arrival,  I  learned  that  the  Governor  was  not 
at  the  Capital,  and  that  he  was  about  to  start  by  the  first 


92  A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS. 

Steamer  for  the  States.  So  I  wrote  him  a  letter,  detailing 
facts  in  relation  to  the  war,  which  for  want  of  investigation 
I  thought  he  was  not  acquainted  with. 

I  also  found  that  the  Oregon  Statesman,  and  the  Pacific 
Christian  Advocate,  had  each  published  the  Sentinel's  ver 
sion  of  the  Indignation  Meeting,  and  the  occasion  for  it,  in 
Rogue  Eiver  Valley.  I  therefore  wrote  a  short  but  plain 
view  from  my  own  stand-point,  of  the  same  affair.  Upon 
offering  it  to  the  Editor  of  the  Statesman,  he  said  he  could 
not  publish  it,  except  as  an  advertisement,  and  that  he 
should  charge  $12.  I  enquired  of  him  if  he  had  not  re 
ceived  a  letter  from  me,  in  reference  to  the  war.  He  an 
swered  he  did  not  know,  but  thought  he  had  not. 

I  then  took  a  similar  article  to  the  Advocate.  The  an 
swer  was,  "I  can  not  publish  it.  The  public  mind  is  in  a 
feverish  excitement,  and  can  not  hear  any  thing  on  that  side 
of  the  question" 

On  being  asked,  he  admitted  that  he  had  received  a 
Letter  from  me  at  the  commencement  of  the  war,  entitled 
a  "  Plea  for  the  Indians,"  but  that  having  consulted  certain 
Brethren,  it  was  decided  not  to  publish  it,  lest  it  should 
raise  a  mob  about  me,  as  well  as  themselves.  I  had  several 
interviews  with  the  then  acting  Editor,  and  I  could  not  but 
appreciate  his  evident  anxiety  to  appear  to  be  right,  even 
in  my  humble  estimation.  He  suggested  that  if  I  could 
write  an  article  very  mild  in  its  tone,  so  as  to  give  no  of 
fense,  he  would  publish  it. 

Accordingly,  I  tried  my  best  to  write  a  crisp  statement, 
imbued  with  as  much  love  and  kindness  as  was  compat 
ible  with  truth ;  but  it  was  not  published  in"  the  succeed 
ing  issue ;  and  I  doubt  if  it  was  at  all.  In  looking  over 
the  files  of  the  Advocate  printed  the  last  year,  and  during 
the  war,  I  find  many  articles  in  reference  to  this  subject, 
which  I  think  the  Editors  can  not  review,  and  feel  satisfied 
that  they  are  characteristic  of  a  Christian  Advocate.  And 
when  they  go  abroad,  and  look  over  the  remnants  of  the 
wasted  Tribes,  they  can  hardly  have  the  satisfaction  which 
Job  experienced,  when  he  said,  "  The  blessing  of  them 
that  were  ready  to  perish  came  upon  me." 

Being  a  stranger  at  almost  every  place  where  I  called, 


A  PLEA  FOR  THE   INDIANS.  93 

except  in  a  very  few  instances,  and  not  making  myself 
known,  I  had  many  opportunities  of  learning  what  were 
the  general  sentiments  in  regard  to  the  War  and  Slavery. 
I  believe  the  mass  of  the  people  would  deprecate  both,  if 
those  who  stood  as  their  moral  guides  were  more  positive 
and  truthful ;  but  because  they  are  so  truckling  and  time 
serving,  a  few  active  speculators  control  the  people,  and 
incite  war,  or  spread  slavery  at  pleasure. 

In  Oregon  City,  I  called  on  the  Editor  of  the  Oregonian, 
and  having  been  told  that  he  was,  or  had  been,  a  minister, 
I  hoped  that  by  presenting  the  moral  aspect  of  the  war,  he 
would  at  least  modify  his  course.  But  he  spoke  as  if 
moral  principles  were  altogether  a  secondary  consideration, 
and  had  nothing  to  do  with  Congress  and  with  Politics.  I 
left  him  to  nurse  and  cherish  his  bitterness  against  Indians 
and  the  Catholics. 

I  also  called  on  Mr.  Adams  of  the  Argus.  After  giving 
him  the  facts  of  the  Eogue  Eiver  war,  he  acknowledged 
that  he  had  been  misinformed,  that  he  had  thought  the 
Indians  had  really  commenced  it.  He  wished  to  do  justice, 
and  manfully  opened  his  columns.  I  availed  myself  of  the 
opportunity,  and  promptly  published  through  the  Argus, 
an  Address  to  the  citizens  of  the  Valley,  and  also  several 
Letters,  designed  to  illustrate  the  relative  position  of  the 
Indians. 

In  the  publications  in  the  Argus  and  the  Tribune,  I 
stated  nothing  but  what  I  personally  knew  to  be  true,  or 
what  was  commonly  reported  to  be  so  in  the  neighborhood 
where  the  occurrences  were  said  to  take  place ;  and  yet  a 
late  number  of  the  Christian  Advocate  asserts  that  I  have 
misrepresented  the  people  of  Southern  Oregon,  and  it 
quotes  from  a  Letter  in  which  well-known  facts  are  mis 
represented,  by  a  futile  attempt  to  show  that  the  Indians 
commenced  the  war.  I  should  not  allude  to  this,  but  for 
the  religious  pretensions  of  the  paper,  and  the  wide  in 
fluence  it  has  among  the  numerous  body  of  Christians  to 
which  it  belongs.  Any  attempt,  however  indirect,  from 
such  a  source,  to  cloak  iniquity,  and  justify  wrong,  is 
nothing  short  of  a  public  calamity.  It  stultifies  moral 
principle ;  and  while  it  hardens  the  Nation's  heart  against 


94  A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS. 

the  death-cries  of  a  perishing  people,  it  scatters  broadcast, 
a  religion  without  love,  and  without  power  either  to  re 
buke  or  control  the  worst  passions  that  degrade  the  com 
mon  character,  and  outrage  the  common  rights  of  humanity 
itself. 

While  I  was  in  Portland,  the  Steamer  came  up  from 
Port  Oxford,  with  six  hundred  Indians,  on  their  way  to 
the  Eeserve.  They  consisted  of  men,  women,  and  chil 
dren,  of  all  ages,  and  had  been  associated  with  the  Rogue 
River  Indians  in  the  war.  Many  of  them  were  nearly 
naked;  but  they  appeared  sprightly,  and  full  of  play, 
probably  on  account  of  their  altered  circumstances,  being 
provided  for,  instead  of  being  hunted  and  murdered. 
Many  of  the  women,  as  well  as  the  men,  took  the  oppor 
tunity  to  bathe  in  the  river.  They  are  a  strong,  muscular 
people,  and  some  of  them  had  fine  foreheads,  indicative  of 
good  intellect ;  and  doubtless,  if  provided  with  the  means 
and  motives,  they  would  soon  become  as  valuable  citizens 
as  the  Dutch,  Irish,  or  any  other  Emigrants  that  come  to 
our  shores. 

I  inquired  of  a  gentleman  in  this  vicinity  in  relation  to 
the  killing  of  the  Chief,  Pupu  Maux-maux.  He  said  that 
the  Chief  came  over  to  the  Whites  under  a  flag  of  truce ; 
but  instead  of  being  allowed  to  return,  he  was  killed,  and 
his  body  mutilated  in  the  most  horrid  manner.  The  same 
gentleman  informed  me  that  there  was  a  family,  consisting 
of  seven  persons,  parents  and  children,  who  did  not  wish 
to  be  with  the  war-party,  and  they  had  put  themselves 
under  the  protection  of  two  white  men,  and  were  on  their 
way  to  the  Reserve,  when  they  were  met  by  a  company  of 
Volunteers,  and  put  to  death. 

I  also  heard  many  particulars  concerning  the  killing  of 
Bolan,  the  Indian  Agent.  I  will  not  dwell  upon  these 
points.  It  is  enough  to  say,  that  what  I  heard  gave  a  very 
different  impression  from  that  given  by  Governor  Stevens 
in  his  Letter  and  Proclamation,  and  quite  the  reverse  of 
what  the  Oregon  papers  tried  to  establish. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 

jDEPRAVED    AND   DEFRAYING-   CONDITIONS. 

1  HAVE  already  alluded  to  the  fact  that  Joel  Palmer,  Su 
perintendent  of  the  Indian  Department  in  Oregon,  took  a 
position,  in  regard  to  the  Indians,  entirely  opposed  to  that 
adopted  by  Governors  Currey  and  Stevens ;  and  when  he 
desired  to  present  his  Plea  "in  their  behalf,  the  Legislature 
of  Oregon  not  only  passed  a  Kesolution  forbidding  him 
the  use  of  the  house  in  order  to  present  it  before  them,  but 
sent  a  memorial  to  the  President  of  the  United  States, 
praying  for  his  removal  from  office. 

Gen.  Palmer  was  formerly  of  Pennsylvania,  a  man  of 
Quaker  predilections,  and  a  person  of  sound  sense.  He 
was  loved  and  revered  by  the  Indians,  and  by  all  who 
really  knew  him.  Bold  as  a  lion  in  the  discharge  of  his 
duty,  he  stood  alone  against  the  highest  officers  and  the 
most  imposing  bodies  of  men  ;  and  with  the  courage  of  a 
hero,  and  the  zeal  of  a  martyr,  braved  the  popular  rage  in 
defense  of  a  down-trodden  people.  For  this  he  is  turned 
from  office,  instead  of  being  honored  and  approved.  Yet 
there  are  those  who  know  his  worth ;  and  they  have  ex 
pressed  their  estimation  of  the  man  in  a  series  of  Resolu- 
tions  adopted  in  a  public  meeting  assembled  for  the  occa 
sion. 

But  the  most  sorrowful,  and,  at  the  same  time,  most 
truthful  expression,  was  given  when  Joel  Palmer  intro 
duced  his  successor  to  the  Indian  Tribes.  A  gathering  of 
the  Chiefs  and  head  men  had  been  called  for.  These,  with 
the  Agents,  were  assembled  under  the  shadow  of  some 
wide-spreading  trees,  as  usual  on  such  occasions ;  and  they 
represented  the  five  thousand,  remnants  of  various  tribes, 
who  were  then  on  the  Reserve. 


96  A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS. 

The  pipe  of  peace  passed  round,  and  for  a  considerable 
time  silence  reigned.  The  dearest  interests  of  all  those 
people  were,  in  a  great  measure,  under  the  control  of  the 
Agent ;  but  they  had  implicit  confidence  in  him.  They 
knew  that  others  had  held  them  in  contempt,  had  sought 
to  scatter  and  destroy  them ;  but  he  had  always  been  their 
friend,  and,  even  at  the  risk  of  his  life,  had  sought  to 
gather  and  preserve  them. 

At  length  Mr.  Palmer  broke  the  silence,  by  informing 
them  that  it  was  the  wish  of  the  Great  Father  that  he 
should  cease  to  be  their  Agent.  The  announcement  pro 
duced  a  shock  not  easily  imagined,  and  which  only  those 
in  similar  circumstances  can  fully  appreciate. 

They  had  but  recently  been  gathered  on  the  Eeserve, 
and  owing  to  the  peculiarities  of  the  location,  or  change 
of  diet,  or  from  a  reaction  of  excitement  after  the  exer 
tions  and  anxieties  of  war,  scores  had  died  of  dysentery ; 
and  the  impression  had  been  to  some  extent  prevelant 
that  they  had  been  poisoned  by  the  Whites.  They  were 
not  easily  soothed,  even  by  the  kindness  of  Mr.  Palmer  ; 
and,  under  the  circumstances,  a  change  of  Agents  was  to 
them  a  subject  of  great  alarm. 

In  introducing  his  successor,  Mr.  Palmer  assured  them 
that  General  H.  would  be  to  them  a  friend,  and  carry  out 
the  same  measures  for  their  improvement  which  he  had 
commenced.  The  Chief,  Old  John,  very  significantly  in 
quired,  "  if  the  same  measures  are  to  be  carried  out,  why 
are  you  dismissed  ?" 

The  two  Governors,  as  well  as  the  Legislature  of  Ore 
gon,  also  accused  the  good  and  brave  General  Wool  of  a 
lack  of  judgment  and  imbecility,  because  he  would  not 
sanction  outrage  and  murder,  to  a  people  who  desired 
peace.  This  spirit  is  well  shown  in  a  scurrilous  article 
which  appeared  in  an  Oregon  paper,  the  Weekly  Times,  of 
September  20,  1856  : 


"The  People  of  Oregon  City,  and  other  Points,  had 
great  rejoicings  on  the  reception  of  the  rumor  that  Gen 
eral  Wool  was  to  be  superseded  by  General  Harney,  Can- 


A  PLEA  FOR  THE   INDIANS.  97 

lions  were  fired,  bonfires  lighted,  and  a  general  rejoicing 
of  the  Citizens  throughout  the  upper  "Willamette  Valley. 
It  is  not  certain  that  he  has  been  superseded ;  but  the  ex 
pression  of  the  People  is  conclusive  evidence  of  their  feel 
ings  of  disgust  for  his  career  during  this  disastrous  war. 
This  feeling  is  general ;  it  is  confined  to  no  party,  sect,  or 
condition.  The  women  even  partake  of  this  spirit  and 
feeling  of  disgust  for  his  imbecile  course  in  the  war,  and 
his  unwarranted  public  abuse  of  our  Citizens.  We  learn 
that  the  ladies  contemplate  making  a  silk  petticoat  and 
night-cap,  trimmed  with  gold  lace,  to  present  him  when  he 
returns  to  Oregon." 

I  need  not,  and  therefore  shall  not,  attempt  to  offer  a  de 
fense  of  General  Wool.  The  pure  nobleness  of  his  char 
acter  will  do  much  to  redeem  from  utter  disgrace  that  page 
of  our  history  which  is  foul  with  the  shame  of  his  tra- 
ducers.  ^ 

If  what  I  have  already  presented  is  not  sufficient  to 
show  the  falsity  of  the  assumption  of  the  Oregon  Chris 
tian  Advocate,  that  I  have  misrepresented  the  people,  let 
.me  lay  before  you  a  quotation  from  a  Pacific  paper,  of  an 
occurrence  that  took  place  since  my  leaving  that  coast. 

The  account  relates  to  the  Modocks,  who  occupy  the 
country  between  the  Humboldt  and  the  head  waters  of 
the  Shasta  and  Eogue  Eiver  Yalleys.  They  are  out 
side  the  present  settlements ;  and,  if  left  undisturbed  by 
Traders,  Emigrants,  and  others,  who  go  through  their 
country,  and,  as  already  related,  act  the  part  of  savages, 
they  would  never  interfere  with  the  Whites. 

The  Yreka  Union  (Northern  California),  says :  ' ( About 
thirty-five  miles  from  this  point,  General  Crosby,  with 
Captain  Williams  in  company,  cut  up  a  band  of  Indians, 
killing  nine  bucks,  and  capturing  some  thirty  squaws  and 
papooses,  all  of  whom  were  liberated,  except  two  squaws, 
who  were  brought  to  camp. 

"On  the  4th  inst,  General  Crosby  took  Captain  Mar 
tin's  Company,  with  Adjutant-General  Templeton,  Colonel 
Goodhue,  and  Major  Walton,  of  his  staff,  and  started  on  a 
scout.  They  returned  yesterday  to  Head  Quarters,  hav- 

5 


98  A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS. 

ing  scoured  some  150  miles  of  country.  Several  partie8 
of  Indians  were  seen,  but  they  succeeded  in  getting  off 
either  on  horseback  or  in  boats,  except  one  party  whom 
we  attacked  in  Thule  Lake,  by  wading  in  the  water,  and 
holding  up  our  rifles  and  revolvers.  Most  of  them  made 
their  escape  ;  but  a  strong  wind  blowing  upon  a  lee  shore, 
enabled  us  to  capture  one  boat,  killing  two  bucks  and  a 
squaw,  who  fought  with  a  bow  and  arrow.  There  are 
from  six  to  eight  hundred  warriors  out,  who  need  to  be 
cleared  out  the  worst  way." 

I  ask  what  enlightened  American,  who  regards  the  honor 
of  his  name,  does  not  feel  an  indignant  throb  at  such  a  re 
cital  as  the  foregoing,  even  admitting  that  they  had  stolen 
beeves,  as  was  alleged.  Emigrants  had  previously  de 
stroyed  their  fish,  stolen  their  horses,  and  murdered  their 
people.  Such  communications  offend  both  good  feeling 
and  good  taste,  alike  by  their  revolting  savageness  and 
their  weak  and  jpiserable  vulgarity.  Yet  how  many  such, 
spirits  repose  at  home,  un whipped  of  justice,  or  walk  abroad 
unscathed,  and  that  in  a  land  of  Eeligion,  Law,  and  civili 
zation,  in  pious,  Protestant,  free,  Democratic  America.  If 
there  is  any  National  character  among  us,  what  effect  on  \\ 
will  be  produced  by  such  habits  as  these  ? 

Is  it  right  to  continue  silent,  and  allow  these^  marauders, 
under  the  high-sounding  dignities  of  Generals, 'Majors,  and 
Captains,  to  "  scour"  the  country  of  these  poor  people, 
armed  with  rifles  and  revolvers,  to  plunder  and  murder 
a  few  disheartened  men,  who,  with  their  helpless  wives  and 
little  ones,  have  nothing  but  bows  and  arrows  to  defend 
themselves,  and  are  struggling  against  wind  and  water  only 
to  get  out  of  the  way.  Will  this,  and  a  thousand  things 
Like  it,  be  honorable  items  for  our  future  history  ?  Mean 
and  horrible  as  the  account  appears,  it  is  in  perfect  keep 
ing  with  nearly  all  the  Oregon  papers  have  published  on 
the  subject  since  the  commencement  of  the  war.  .  Such, 
conduct  is  worthy  only  of  the  darkest  ages,  and  the  most 
miserable  conditions.  Bold,  honest,  self-relying  Barbarism- 
would  despise  it,  and  only  the  weakest  and  most  contempt 
ible  savages  could  thus  abuse  and  degrade  themselves. 

That  such  influences  do  deprave,  is  seen  everywhere  in 


A  PLEA  FOR  THE   INDIANS.  99 

those  regions  where  they  occur.  It  is  not  the  immediate 
results — the  destruction  of  property  and  life,  and  the  deso 
lation  of  families,  which  are  the  greatest  evils.  There  is  a 
deep  and  widely  spreading  demoralization,  which  the  exit 
of  a  generation  can  hardly  erase.  An  anecdote  which  I 
remember,  will  illustrate  the  truth  of  this.  A  few  months 
ago  I  called  on  a  neighbor  in  Oregon,  and,  upon  asking  a 
little  boy  for  his  father,  he  answered,  "  Pap's  gone  to  kill 
Indians ;  and  I  am  going  to  have  a  gun,  and  kill  them,  too, 
as  soon  's  I  am  big  enough  1" 

Thus,  tender  little  children  are  made  inhuman;  and, 
from  disregarding  the  rights  of  Indians,  they  come,  at 
length,  to  lose  all  sense  of  moral  obligation  in  a  highly  en 
ergized  selfishness,  that  is  far  worse,  and  more  revolting, 
than  a  spontaneous  savageism  or  a  natural  brutality.  I 
appeal,  for  the  truth  of  this,  to  the  people  themselves — the 
daily  details  of  the  Pacific  and  California  papers.  Take 
the  following,  from  one  of  the  former,  as  a  specimen : 

"  Society  continues  in  a  very  disorganized  state  through 
out  the  Interior.  The  country  journals  are  filled  with  ac 
counts  of  numerous,  daring  robberies.  From  Mariposa  to 
Yreka,  the  whole  State  is  infested  with  gangs  of  footpads 
and  mounted  highwaymen.  "  Few  travelers  can  pass  with 
out  being  attacked,  or  threatened,  by  these  Desperadoes." 

But  the  loss  of  moral  principle  is  not  only  apparent  in 
these  outbreaks,  but  also  in  a  general  tendency  to  corrup 
tion.  The  election  franchise  is  bought  and  sold ;  Patriotism 
is  perverted;  Justice  and  Truth  are  lost  sight  of;  and  only 
the  spoils  of  Party  decorate  the.  goal,  toward  which  the 
Candidates  and  their  Supporters  rush  with  infuriated  haste, 
that  sweeps  down,  and  tramples  under  foot,  the  unpro 
tected  Public  Grood,  while  private  emolument  becomes  the 
object  of  highest  ambition.  And  think  not,  because  the 
subject  we  have  been  discussing,  relates  directly  to  the 
people  beyond  the  Kocky  Mountains,  that,  therefore,  they 
only  are  to  blame ;  or  that  they  have,  abstractly,  less  re 
gard  for  social  order  and  social  law  than  their  brethren  in 
the  States.  This  is  not  so  ;  but  just  in  proportion  as  prin 
ciples  of  injustice  or  inhumanity  are  patronized  by  public 
sentiment,  the  individuals  who  compose  the  elements  of 


100  A   PLKA    FOR   THK   INDIANS. 

that  community  must  become  inhuman  and  depraved. 
Have  not  the  friends  of  Eight  and  Good  Order  something 
to  consider  in  this  significant  fact — something  to  look 
after,  and  to  question,  if,  perad venture,  the  leaven  be  not 
found  working  in  their  midst  ?  Every  departure  from  fun 
damental  principles  of  Eight,  must  influence,  with  more  or 
less  direct  power,  all  human  society.  Central  America 
and  the  Isles  of  the  sea  are  made  to  feel  it ;  and  the  mas 
sacre  in  Panama,  and  the  war  in  Oregon,  are  some  of  its 
legitimate  results. 

The  Negroes  of  the  South  are  not  the  only  victims  of 
Slavery.  The  Indians  also  are,  more  or  less,  victims  of  the 
slave  spirit,  that  has  crept  into  our  national  councils,  and 
controls  all  the  machinery  of  our  Government.  This  is  the 
mote  that  blinds  the  clear  eye:  this  is  the  wrong  that  pal 
sies  the  strong  hand :  this  is  the  Hydra  that  despoils  us  of 
our  own  rights — that  tramples  Humanity  under  foot,  and 
leads  Justice  away  captive.  And  it  is  precisely  because 
our  consciousness  is  thus  perverted,  that  we  cannot  see  the 
great  wrong  we  are  doing  to  the  Indians.  We  are  not 
merely  encroaching  on  their  territory,  driving  them  from 
their  homes,  and  destroying  them  by  repeated  violations 
of  all  natural  and  national  law;  but  we  are  murdering 
their  reputation.  We  are,  by  every  means,  degrading 
them,  and  thus  crushing  out  the  self-respect,  and  blasting 
the  honor,  which,  to  a  true  Indian,  is  always  precious. 

Even  their  religious  teachers  are  not  altogether  exempt 
from  this  wrong.  Though  many  of  them  are  zealous  and 
devoted  in  their  labors  of  reform,  yet  results  show  that 
there  is  a  fatal  mistake  somewhere,  that  serves  to  neu  tral- 
ize  the  best  intentions  and  the  most  earnest  efforts.  Ardu 
ous  have  been  the  labors  and  great  the  privations  of  many 
who  have  consecrated  themselves ;  and  yet,  if  we  take  their 
own  testimony,  the  measure  of  success  is  not  commensu 
rate  with  the  sacrifices  incurred. 

Of  all  the  Churches,  I  believe  the  Methodists  have  had 
the  longest  and  most  extensive  experience  in  Missionary 
labors'  among  the  Indians.  Their  Eeport,  presented  at  the 
last  AnnualConference  by  the  Committee  on  Missions,is  con 
clusive  on  this  subject,  as  the  folio  wing  extracts  will  show 

"So 'far  as  the  moral  condition  of  the  Indians  is  con- 


A  PLE4  FOE  THE  INDIANS.  101 

cerned,  it  will  answer  our  present  purpose  to  say,  that  they 
are  wretched  heathen,  in  the  lowest  depths  of  moral  deg 
radation. 

"But  it  is  also  true  that  there  remains  to  be  seen  among 
them  but  slight  traces  of  the  moral  benefit  which,  it  was 
hoped,  these  astonishing  sacrifices  and  labors  would  con 
fer.  They  are  almost,  if  not  quite,  as  degraded  and  desti 
tute  of  every  thing  embraced  in  morality,  civilization,  and 
religion,  as  they  were  when  the  first  Missionary  to  this 
land  found  them  in  their  nakedness,  their  ignorance,  and 
their  pollution." 

And  this  is  a  Report  of  that  Civilization  that  has  de 
praved  them  with  its  vices,  and  maddened  them  with  its 
crimes — that  has  without  warrant  invaded  their  dominions, 
robbed  them  of  their  lands,  made  them  outlaws  in  their 
own  country,  hunted  them  in  their  own  woods,  murdered 
them  on  their  own  hearth-stones,  violated  their  homes,  and 
thrust  the  plow  into  their  sepulchres,  until  its  very  corn 
becomes  a  vampire,  and  sucks  up  the  sacred  ashes  of  their 
Fathers'  Graves! 

And  have  we  not  done,  or  sanctioned  the  doing,  of  all 
this,  and  more  than  could  be  here  repeated?  "Who  can 
wonder,  then,  that  they  are  as  bad,  or  even  worse,  than 
they  were  before  they  became  involved  in  all  these  false 
relations.  That  they  are,  as  a  general  thing,  more ^  de 
graded  than  they  were  in  their  original  barbarism,  is,  I 
believe,  admitted  by  all  intelligent  observers ;  and  that, 
too,  after  millions  of  money  have  been  squandered,  accord 
ing  to  the  Missionaries7  own  statement,  only  to  harden  and 
debase  them. 

There  must  then  be  some  radical  error  in  their  treat 
ment  ;  and  this  becomes  the  more  certain  when  we  con 
sider  that  simple  moral  means,  combined  with  the  arts  and 
graces  of  a  true  Christian  life,  under  ordinary  circum 
stances,  never  fail  to  develop  and  refine  them.  Taking 
all  these  circumstances  into  consideration,  I  would  respect 
fully  suggest  a  thorough  reorganization,  and  entire  change 
of  forces.  Let  them,  at  least,  have  a  religion  that  will  not 
insult  their  common  sense,  by  presenting  itself  with  Whisky 
and  Creeds  in  one  hand,  and  Bibles  and  Bowie-knives  in 
the  other 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

AFFAIRS    AND    ADVENTURES    IN    CALIFORNIA. 

I  TOOK  passage  on  board  the  Columbia,  from  Portland 
to  San  Francisco.  There  were  on  board  two  young  Indian 
men,  who  had  been  up,  with  their  fellows,  to  act  as  inter 
preters  for  General  Palmer,  and  were  returning  to  the 
Coast  to  accompany  others  who  were  preparing  to  come  on 
the  Eeserve. 

As  they  slept  in  berths  not  far  from  the  one  I  occupied, 
I  had  a  good  opportunity  to  notice  their  demeanor  ;  and  I 
was  pleased  to  see  how  careful  they  were  to  observe  all 
the  proprieties  of  civilized  life.  They  were  very  decently 
clothed,  and  regular  in  morning  ablutions,  as  carefully  ar~ 
ranging  their  toilet  before  the  glass  as  the  most  refined 
among  us.  They  were  reserved,  or  I  should  rather  say 
dignified  in  their  manners,  never  obtrusive,  but  at  the 
same  time  ready  to  communicate  with  those  who  addressed 
them ;  yet  they  were  haughtily  and  contemptuously  treated 
by  some  on  board,  and  were  even  excluded  from  the  table. 
This  was  with  a  very  ill  judgment,  as  it  seemed  to  me,  for 
the  grossest  and  lowest  jtoosiers  were  admitted ;  and  even 
common  decency  was,  in  many  cases,  quite  disregarded, 
while,  on  the  other  hand,  the  manners  of  those  young 
men  really  would  not  disgrace  a  court.  I  particularly 
noticed  one  drunken  man,  who  seemed  to  regard  them 
with  a  supreme  contempt,  as  he  vociferated ;  "  I  am  from 
the  best  blood  in  Virginia  I"  A  look  at  this  lofty  sprig  of 
humanity  presented  a  striking  contrast  to  his  words ;  for  he 
appeared  a  living  mass  of  corruption,  with  a  rum  nose, 
bleared  eyes,  and  tobacco-juice  dribbling  from  each  corner 
of  his  mouth.  He  was  the  greatest  point  against  himself 
that  I  ever  saw  in  my  life,  and  would  be  worth  a  score  of 


A  PLEA -FOR  THE  INDIANS.  103 

stump  lecturers  against  the  special  claims  of  a  hereditary 
nobility.  But  there  are  many  such,  especially  in  the  South 
and  South- West.  They  have  but  to  announce  themselves, 
and  the  illustration  which  they  present  is  irresistible. 

On  arriving  in  San  Francisco  I  found  the  whole  city  in 
commotion.  The  Vigilance  Committee  had  just  put  down 
the  constituted  Authorities.  They  had  taken  possession  of 
a  block  of  buildings  as  their  Head  Quarters  ;  and  on  two 
streets  leading  to  it,  had  raised  a  bulwark  of  sand-bags, 
well  mounted  with  cannon.  Several  notorious  assassins 
had  been  hung ;  others  were  imprisoned,  and  many  reck 
less  men  were  banished  from  the  country.  These  meas 
ures  were  considered  necessary,  on  account  of  the  general 
corruption  and  frauds  of  those  in  office. 

I  called  on -the  Editor,  to  whom  I  had  written  from  Eogue 
Eiver  Yalley ;  but  he  said  he  had  received  no  letters  with 
my  signature.  I  then  visited  several  of  the  principal  Ed 
itors,  and  endeavored  to  present  the  claims  of  the  Indians ; 
but  owing  to  the  difficulties  in  which  their  City  and  State 
were  involved,  as  well  as  the  fact  that  the  Oregon  papers  had 
been  so  unanimous  in  their  one-sided  statement,  all  of  them 
were  utterly  averse  to  admit  any  thing  on  the  subject.  It 
seemed  to  be  taken  for  granted  that  the  war  was  right, 
and  that  although  General  Wool  was  held  in  high  esteem, 
he  might  have  been  mistaken  in  his  views. 

I  was  much  pained  to  find  such  a  state  of  affairs  ;  for  my 
great  hope  of  stopping  the  mutual  murders,  and  inaugu 
rating  a  happier  influence,  was  through  the  California 
Press.  My  funds  being  exhausted,  I  was  under  the  ne 
cessity  of  staying  in  San  Francisco  two  months  before  I 
could  procure  the  means  for  further  travel.  During  that 
time,  I  learned  much  of  the  condition  of  the  Indians  in 
various  parts  of  the  country.  I  often  inquired  of  Miners, 
and  others  whom  I  met  with  in  the  city,  in  regard  to  their 
treatment,  and  means  of  subsistence.  The  sum  total  of 
their  testimony  was  to  the  effect  that,  remnants  of  once 
powerful  tribes  are,  with  few  exceptions,  greatly  abused, 
being  in  the  condition  of  a  disinherited  family  of  children, 
treated  as  unwelcome  strangers  in  the  place  that  gave  them 
birth,  and  punished  as  transgressors  on  their  paternal  do- 


104  A  PLEA  FOE  THE  INDIANS. 

mains.  They  are  thus  reduced  to  beggary,  and  yet  de« 
spised  for  being  poor.  They  are  forced,  or  seduced  into 
the  lowest  depths  of  civilized  vice,  and  then  punished  for 
their  depravity.  With  no  encouragement  to  improve,  and 
no  means  of  self-elevation,  they  are  accused  of  being  in- 
dolent,«and  reported  as  incapable  of  progress.  Every  item 
I  heard  or  read,  in  relation  to  public  wrongs,  kept  my 
sympathies  alive,  and  sometimes  wounded  to  the  quick. 
My  soul  yearned ;  and  I  wondered  how  it  was  that  the  de 
plorable  condition  of  the  Aborigines  could  neither  be  seen 
nor  felt  by  the  Philanthropists  and  Eeformers  of  the  land. 

With  this  feeling  largely  predominant,  I  wrote  an  Appeal 
to  the  Press  of  California,  and  urged  upon  that  body,  by 
every  consideration  of  humanity  and  religion,  that  they 
should  take  up  the  subject,  and  write  in  behalf  of  justice 
and  mercy  for  the  poor  Indians.  The  article  was  taken  to 
the  most  religious  and  influential  paper  in  the  State,  the 
California  Christian  Advocate.  Three  days  afterward  I  was 
informed  that  it  was  not  admissible  in  their  columns. 

Cast  down,  but  not  discouraged,  I  wrote  different  Articles, 
and  took  them  respectively  to  the  Chronicle  and  Town- 
Talk.  These  expressed  some  good  feeling,  but  thought 
that  the  subject  was  foreign,  and  not  of  sufficient  interest 
f  >r  their  papers.  The  Bulletin  Editors  spoke  kindly,  as  did 
also  those  of  the  True  Californian,  and  promised  to  interest 
themselves  in  the  cause,  as  soon  as  the  more  pressing  diffi 
culties  in  which  their  city  was  involved  should  subside. 

Having  a  copy  of  the  Oregon  Argus,  containing  the 
"  Address  to  Citizens  of  Kogue  Kiver  Valley,"  I  gave  it  to 
the  Editor  of  the  Western  Standard,  in  which  paper  it  was 
republished,  as  well  as  several  other  articles  relative  to  the 
same  subject. 

I  was  among  strangers,  and  had  as  yet  met  with  none 
who  seemed  fully  to  appreciate  the  peculiarities  of  my 
position,  or  who  were  disposed  to  aid  the  great  object 
which  circumstances  had  called  upon  me  to  advance.  In 
taking  a  walk  one  evening,  and  in  deep  thought  as  to  what 
course  I  should  pursue,  I  noticed  an  assembly  in  the  base 
ment  of  the  "  Pilgrims'  Church,"  and,  with  others,  I  en 
tered  to  spend  an  hour.  Years  had  intervened  since  I  was 


A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS.  105 

in  a  meeting  where  the  harmonious  song  of  praise,  and  the 
soul -in  spiring  prayer  were  so  grateful  as  on  that  occasion. 
The  Minister,  Eev.  Mr.  Lacy,  seemed  a  genial  spirit ;  and 
I  also  was  impelled  to  give  utterance  to  my  feelings. 

After  this,  many  friends  expressed  sympathy;  and 
through '  the  kindness  of  Mr.  Lacy,  I  was  introduced 
to  the  Kev.  Mr.  Brady,  Editor  and  Proprietor  of  two  pa 
pers,  The  Pacific,  and  The  Evening  Post.  This  gentleman, 
with  the  full,  comprehensive  benevolence  of  a  Christian 
Philanthropist,  grasped  the  subject;  and  by  publishing 
Articles  and  Editorials  did  much,  with  other  papers  that 
also  opened  their  columns,  to  arouse  public  benevolence  in 
a  right  direction. 

I  also  met  with  several  merchants,  and  other  prominent 
citizens  from  Eogue  Eiver  Yalley,  some  of  whom  had  been 
my  opponents,  and  were  deeply  involved  in  war  indemni 
ties.  Nevertheless,  without  exception,  they  each  expressed 
toward  me  hearty  kindness,  and  were  earnest  in  solicita 
tion  for  my  return  to  the  Valley,  assuring  me  of  safety  and 
protection. 

I  felt  when  they  spoke  how  pleasant  it  would  be  again 
to  dwell  in  my  own  domicile,  to  sit  by  my  own  hearth 
stone,  in  company  with  wife,  and  son,  and  friends,  and  to 
rest  from  strife  and  oppression ;  for  I  had  learned  from  ex 
perience,  that  to  wage  a  warfare  at  one's  own  expense,  in 
behalf  of  a  despised  Kace,  and  against  popular  prejudice, 
was  hard  work — sailing  against  wind  and  tide.  But  I  had 
counted  the  cost ,  and  thus  was  prepared  to  stand  by  what 
ever  results  were  to  be  obtained. 

5* 


CHAPTER    XV. 

YAEIOUS    OBJECTIONS    ANSWERED. 

ON  the  5th  of  September,  1856,  I  took  leave  of  my  good 
friends  in  California,  and  especially  the  Kev.  Messrs.  Lacy 
and  Bray  ton,  Mr.  Woodward  of  the  W  hat-Cheer  House, 
the  Proprietors  of  the  Hilliard  Temperance  House,  and 
other  gentlemen,  by  whose  liberality,  I  was  furnished  with 
Free  Tickets  to  New  York,  worth  two  hundred  dollars. 

Having  heard  of  the  disturbance  in  which  several  lives 
were  lost  at  Panama,  I  was  interested  to  learn  upon  the 
spot  the  cause  of  the  .difficulty ;  but  upon  arriving  there, 
we  were  no  sooner  landed  than  the  cars  were  ready,  leav- 
ing  me  no  resource  but  to  look  at  the  huts,  the  people,  and 
the  tropical  scenery,  with  short  and  rapid  flights  of  thought 
and  fancy,  as  we  glanced  along. 

During  the  journey  we  made  one  or  two  halts,  when  I 
noticed  that  the  Natives  were  generally  of  good  size,  with 
rather  pleasant-looking  features,  and  apparently  well-fed 
though  not  corpulent.  They  were  cheerful  and  disposed 
to  trade,  having  a  variety  of  ornaments  and  eatables  for 
sale.  We  saw  no  cultivated  fields,  and  scarcely  the  ap 
pearance  of  a  garden,  but  abundance  of  tropical  fruits,  such 
as  the  yam,  the  date,  and  cocoa-nut,  which  form  their  chief 
subsistence.  Since  I  have  heard  that  our  Government  de 
mands  indemnity  of  this  people,  on  account  of  the  dis 
turbance,  I  have  wondered  what  conditions  could  have 
induced  Yam  and  Cocoa-nuts  to  challenge  a  fight  with  Pork 
and  Beans. 

In  Aspenwall  the  people  are  mostly  from  the  Island  of 
Jamaica ;  and  they  appeared  to  me  more  shrewd  and  capa 
ble  of  making  headway,  than  the  colored  people  of  the 
States.  At  least  I  never  saw  so  many  of  this^lass  together 


A   PLEA  FOR  THE   INDIANS.  107 

before.     They  are  all  independent  traders,  and  seem  de 
termined  to  make  a  living  in  their  vocation. 

I  arrived  in  New  York  on  the  27th  of  September  ;  and 
as  the  vessel  touched  the  pier,  I  was  reminded  of  my  varied 
experience,  since  I  first  stepped  on  shore  from  Liverpool, 
26  years  ago.  On  that  occasion  I*had  spent  only  part  of  a 
day  in  the  city,  and  had  never  been  in  it  since ;  and  now, 
though  a  stranger  amid  its  busy  throngs,  I  felt  compara 
tively  at  home,  and  familiar  with  the  general  history,  the 
stirring  questions,  and  the  names  and  positions  of  public 
men,  and  a  lively  interest  in  the  success  of  its  free  Institu 
tions,  and  its  beneficent  measures.  In  short,  I  now  felt 
more  sensibly,  by  contrast,  the  true  spirit  and  power  of- 
adoption ;  for  on  my  first  arrival  in  the  country,  I  knew 
nothing  of  this  great  fraternizing  sense  of  community  in 
what  I  saw ;  but  every  thing  was  new,  and  strange,  and 
blank.  * 

But  in  the  main  object  of  my  visit  I  was  again  doomed 
to  disappointment.  The  Papers  and  the  People  were  all 
filled  up  and  absorbed  by  the  affairs  of  Kansas  and  the 
Presidential  Election ;  and  there  seemed  no  use  in  any  at 
tempt  to  invoke  attention  and  sympathy  for  a  people  be 
yond  the  Mountains. 

For  several  weeks  I  attended  various  churches  on  the 
Sabbath,  and  many  political  meetings  of  different  parties 
on  the  week  days,  from  all  of  which  I  received  a  deep  im 
pression,  that  there  is,  generally,  an  earnest  desire  that 
Justice  should  rule  the  Nation.  Human  Brotherhood  was 
a  favorite  topic  with  some,  while  others,  who  differ  both  in 
politics  and  religion,  were,  nevertheless,  advocating  Hu 
man  Kights,.and  devising  plans  for  broad  benevolence.  I 
could  see  all  around*  me  the  struggling  effort  for  a  better 
condition  ;  but  the  main  difficulty  appeared  to  be,  the  best 
means  for  its  attainment.  Philanthropy  seemed  active  in 
response  to  every  call.  In  the  rostrum  and  the  pulpit,  the 
claims  of  various  departments  of  humanitary  effort  were 
set  forth  in  vivid  colors,  and  before  assembled  multitudes ; 
while  the  Press  teemed  with  arguments  for  efficient  appli 
cation.  The  various  political  parties,  and  social  reformers, 
had  each  their  Organizations.  Societies  and  periodicals 


108  A  PLEA  FOR  THE   INDIANS. 

were  in  operation  for  the  benefit  of  the  colored  population. 
Women,  also,  had  their  conventions,  and  the  Poor  of  every 
grade,  their  friends.  My  heart  sympathized  with  all  these ; 
but  my  joy  was  marred  by  the  consideration,  that  there 
was  a  whole  Kace,  natives  of  our  soil,  in  circumstances  de 
manding  deep  commiseration;  and  yet  not  one  word  or 
whisper  could  I  hear  in  their  behalf. 

Various  objections  were  made ;  but  the  chief  one  was 
this,  that  the  Races  can  not  live  together — that  even  if  the 
Indians  scrupulously  observed  treaty  stipulations,  others 
would  not ;  and  consequently  war  and  enmity  must  con 
tinue. 

Such  a  sentiment  we  should  blush  to  hear,  and  scorn  to 
encourage.  Is  it  not  a  virtual  acknowledgment  that  our 
People  are  more  trifling  and  faithless  than  savages,  that 
our  Government  has  less  power  to  restrain  transgression 
than  theirs  ?  and  that,  as  a  Nation,  we  are  so  destitute  both 
of  moral  principle  and  power,  that  we  can  maintain  our  in 
tegrity  only  with  Peoples  that  are  strong  enough  to  enforce 
observance  at  our  hands  ?  If  such  a  sentiment  were  to  ob 
tain  general  acceptance,  the  Nations  of  the  Earth  would  be 
inclined  to  hold  our  Republican  forms  in  low  esteem; 
while  the  weaker  communities  of  Mankind  would  think  of 
us  as  bullies  and  cowards,  possessing  but  little  magna 
nimity,  and  no  religion. 

And  yet,  mortifying  as  this  acknowledgment  is,  it  is  not 
only  made  on  the  Frontiers,  but  assented  to,  to  a  lament 
able  extent.  The  great  idea,  or  rather  fact,  of  popular 
sovereignty,  has  been  perverted  by  sectional  portions  of 
our  country,  for  practices  completely  subversive  of  the 
principles  by  which  the  whole  people  have  engaged  to  be 
governed.  And  this  is  why  I  address,  and  urge  this  Ap 
peal  to  the  Nation  at  large.  The  question  comes  home  to 
every  man's  conscience.  Shall  we  be  silent  or  indifferent, 
while  a  fractional  portion  of  the  community,  in  the  name, 
and  with  the  means  of  the  whole,  persistently  compromises 
and  tramples  on  the  National  honor  and  good  faith,  by 
multiplied  aggressions,  and  determined  destruction,  toward 
a  people  whom  we  are  bound,  by  every  principle  of  even 
common  justice,  to  cherish  and  protect  ?  -  Let  the  em- 


A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS.  109 

phatic  NO,  sound  long  and  loud,  untill  the  WILL  of  a 
mighty  People  shall  dare  assert  itself — to  be  known 
and  felt  throughout  the  length  and  breadth  of  our  vast 
domain. 

The  false  relations  which  have  given  birth  to  such 
deplorable  results,  as-  are  seen  everywhere  west  of  the 
Mountains,  mainly  grow  out  of  false  views  of  the  moral 
and  intellectual  nature  of  Man.  The  grand  mistake  is,  that 
*brute  force,  which  is  addressed  to  the  lower  faculties,  is 
everywhere  recognized  as  the  basis,  not  only  of  law  and 
legal  action,  but  of  social  and  civil  institutions,  instead  of 
such  means  as  will  rouse  and  call  forth  the  higher  powers. 
But  all  experience  proves,  that  one  good  action  will  do 
more  toward  the  amelioration  of  a  savage  people,  than  the 
combined  force  of  all  the  armies  in  Christendom.  I  will 
relate  an  anecdote  in  point.. 

Some  years  ago,  a  small  Tribe  of  Indians,  being  passen 
gers  on  board  one  of  our  Lake  Steamers,  one  of  the  num 
ber,  a  woman,  fell  overboard,  and  would  have  been 
drowned,  but  for  the  Mate  of  the  Vessel,  who  risked  his 
own  life  to  save  her.  The  generous  act  had  a  salutary 
effect  on  the  Tribe,  and  was  warmly  applauded  by  all  the 
leading  papers  in  the  country.  It  is  only  low  and  grovel 
ing  minds  that  can  not  appreciate  the  act  as  the  prompt 
ings  of  a  noble  and  generous  nature,  akin  to  his  who 
"  went  about  doing  good." 

No  doubt  that  worthy  man  enjoyed  a  full  reward,  in 
seeing  the  grateful  emotions  of  these  poor  people,  for  the 
restoration  of  a  wife  or  mother,  to  her  family  and  friends  ; 
but  this  was  only  a  small  part  of  the  good  performed,  and 
the  happiness  enjoyed.  It  was  a  good  to  all  who  heard  or 
read  of  the  circumstance,  because  it  was  an  appeal  to  the 
higher  faculties,  and  by  sympathy  imparted  strengthening 
and  pleasurable  exercise  to  what  constitutes  the  purest  joy 
and  glory  of  man. 

And  O,  what  an  amount  of  peace,  and  good  will,  and 
general  happiness,  and  national  elevation,  we  might  attain, 
if  all  were  imbued  with  a  similar  spirit ;  while,  on  the 
other  hand,  for  the  want  of  it,  we  may  justly  attribute 
•the  necessity  of  standing  armies,  and  the  occurrence  of 


110  A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS. 

wars,  with  all  their  miseries,  together  with  the  culture  and 
predominance  of  the  Animal  instead  of  the  true  Human 
Nature. 

Again,  there  is  a  prevalent  belief  that  the  Indians  are 
doomed  to  fall  away  and  perish  from  the  track  of  Civiliza 
tion — that  it  is  in  the  order  of  Nature ;  and,  therefore,  it  is 
not  worth  while  to  attempt  to  save  them.  But  let  us  en 
quire  what  destiny,  or  law  of  Nature  can  exist  for  such  a 
purpose.  The  approach  of  Civilization  does  not  annihilate* 
or  poison  the  natural  elements.  Earth,  air,  and  water  con 
tinue  the  same  ;  and  therefore  altered  nature  does  not -de 
stroy.  And  even  if  civilization  was  forced  upon  them,  so 
as  to  bring  them  at  once  under  its  conventionalities  and 
restraints,  even  this  change,  great  as  it  would  be,  could 
not,  in  my  humble  opinion,  cause  their  destruction.  It  is 
a  well-known  fact,  that  animals  become .  acclimated  and 
live  in  extremely  unnatural  Conditions ;  while  it  is  ad 
mitted  on  all  hands,  that  Man  has  the  power  of  acclimation, 
and  adaptation  to  ungenial  circumstances,  in  a  far  greater 
degree  than  any  of  the  inferior  animals.  I  will,  then, 
venture  the  assertion,  that  it  is  not  Civilization  that  de 
stroys,  but  the  more  highly  energized  Savageism  that  creeps 
under  its  mantle,  usurps  its  prerogative,  and  does  un 
speakable  wrongs  and  mischiefs  in  its  name.  In  short,  it 
is  that  same  spirit,  that  has  no  independent  absolute  integ 
rity,  but,  by  its  own  confession,  disregards  treaties,  and 
tramples  them  under  foot,  whenever  it  can  do  so  with  im 
punity.  Let  us  look  at  the  plain  facts,  and  see  if  this  is 
not  so.  We  have  robbed  them  of  their  lands  ;  we  have 
invaded  their  homes ;  and  while  we  have  refused  them  suf 
ficient  protection  from  our  own,  we  have  withheld  from 
them  the  right  of  Self  Government.  We  have  appropri 
ated  every  choice  spot  west  of  the  Mountains,  for  our  own 
use,  and,  in  many  instances,  have  put  them  under  the  con 
trol  of  Agents  whose  acts  declare  them  the  enemies  of  the 
Eace.  Let  me  illustrate  this  by  an  anecdote.  I  inquired 
of  a  gentleman  in  relation  to  the  Reserve,  on  which  they 
were  collecting  the  Indians ;  and  he  answered  that  it  was 
" only  fit  for  a  Reserve"  By  this  I  inferred  that  the  coun 
try  was  of  such  a  character  as  neither  Whites  nor  Indians 


A  PLEA.  FOR  THE  INDIANS.          Ill 

would  choose  to  live  upon.  Need  we  wonder  that  the  In 
dian  Tribes  pine  away  and  die,  when  we  see  them  crowded 
together  in  a  small  compass,  consisting  chiefly  of  hills  and 
ravines  unfit  for  culture,  and  therefore  alike  ungenial  to  the 
Savage  and  the  Civilized  ? 

Let  us  imagine  what  would  be  the  chance  for  longevity, 
if  the  inhabitants  of  any  of  our  cities  were  compelled  to 
move,  en  masse,  and  takirup  their  abode  within  some  cir 
cumscribed  limits  of  our  mountain  ranges,  which  are  not 
yet  occupied  by  man,  and  where  the  passes  are  all  guarded 
by  Forts,  and  armed  by  hostile  soldiers,  to  prevent  escape 
Let  us  fancy  them  cut  off  from  all  the  world,  deprived  of 
their  liberty,  and  though  supplied  with-  food,  yet  of  a  dif 
ferent  and  less  congenial  quality  than  their  accustomed 
diet.  Let  us  think  of  them  thus  confined,  without  local 
attraction,  without  occupation,  without  motive  for  exertion 
or  encouragement  to  improve,  and  all  these  evils  enhanced 
by  the  oppressive  and  debasing  consciousness  of  being 
hated  and  despised  by  the  whole  world. 

And  for  the  sake  of  the  argument,  setting  aside  all  ex 
tra  acts  of  oppression,  robbery,  and  murder,  whether  single 
or  wholesale,  who  does  not  see  that  a  people  thus  placed, 
without  commerce  and  without  hope,  would  soon  deteri 
orate,  and  under  the  influence  of  wasting  diseases  forced 
upon  them  from  without,  would  gradually  perish  from 
the  Earth  ?  Yet  these  circumstances  certainly  are  not  the 
essential  attributes  or  adjuncts  of  Civilization,  but  absolutely 
the  reverse.  In  all  these  facts,  and  many  more  like  them, 
there  is  direct  proof,  that  whenever  a  savage  Tribe  de 
clines  and  subsides  from  the  path  of  a  more  highly 
advanced  people,  it  is  not  owing  to  the  Civilization,  but  be 
cause  of  the  more  strongly-armed  selfishness  which  it 
organizes,  and  carries  along  with  it.  To  this,  then,  the 
remedy  should  be  applied  ;  and  being  so,  it  would  be  felt 
to  the  very  heart's  core  of  our  own  People. 

The  Indians  also  labor  under  another  difficulty,  not  less 
formidable  than  the  last-mentioned,  and  that  is,  the  cold 
indifference  that  is  felt  toward  them,  on  the  ground  of 
their  obstinate  unbelief.  Knowing  this,  as  I  do,  I  should  not 
be  just  were  I  to  omit  a  plea  for  them  in  this  particular. 


112  A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS. 

Let  us  for  a  moment  consider,  that,  although  the  Indians 
may  not  have  a  Bible,  or  a  knowledge  of  the  Written 
"Word,  it  by  no  means  follows  that  they  are  destitute  of 
divine  inspiration  and  of  religious  principle  ;  for  we  should 
bear  in  mind,  that  they  who  wrote  our  own  Bible,  had, 
previously,  none  to  read.  And  yet  we  learn  that  Enoch 
walked  with  God,  that  Abraham  was  the  friend  of  Go.d, 
that  Moses  observed  the  Law  "before  it  was  written,  and 
that  men  of  old  were  moved  by  the  Holy  Ghost,  before 
Prophets  spoke.  Thus  we  have  the  strongest  proof  from 
the  Bible  itself,  that  inspiration,  and  the  knowledge  of 
God,  are  not  derived  from  it  alone. 

Moreover,  the  Scriptures  plainly  declare  that  there  is 
"a  light  that  lighteth  every  man  that  cometh  into  the 
world,"  and  that  "  God  is  no  respecter  of  persons."  What 
presumption,  then,  it  must  be,  to*  suppose  that  the  Indians 
are  purely  savage,  and  to  treat  them  without  any  regard  to 
their  religion,  their  conscience,  or  their  sense  of  moral 
right. 

It  is  true  that  their  creed  is  not  written  in  a  book ;  neither 
have  they  temples  built  with  hands,  nor  any  idea  of  a 
Triune  God,  or  of  a  Mediator  through  whom  to  approach 
and  conciliate  the  Majesty  on  High.  But  they  have,  on 
their  own  mountains  and  valleys,  the  same  Presence  that 
dwelt  with  Moses,  and  Daniel,  and  the  Prophets  on  the 
mountains  and  valleys  of  Palestine.  The  bright  sun,  and 
the  fertilizing  rain,  are,  to  their  simple  minds,  ministers  of 
blessing.  They  look  up  to  the  blue  canopy  and  meditate 
on  the  starry  heavens  ;  they  bask  on  the  sunny  hill-side, 
or  recline  under  the  spreading  trees ;  they  retire  into  the 
deep  aisles  of  the  forest,  and  find  there  God's  solemn  tem 
ples,  where  the  babbling  brook,  the  sighing  zephyr,  and 
singing  birds,  all  have  ministries  of  love  and  -worship  ;  and 
with  them  they  unite,  in  adoration  of  the  Great  Spirit, 
whose  informing  presence  animates  the  whole,  and  in  whom 
the  Indian,  as  well  as  the  Christian,  lives,  and  moves,  and 
has  his  being. 

They  have,  then,  a  faith,  and  a  creed,  and  the  book  of 
God,  as  revealed  in  Nature,  always  open  before  them. 
They  read,  and  reflect,  and  have  imbibed  a  Theology,  that 


A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS.  113 

is  not  only  sacred  to  them,  but  has  also  that  vital  element 
which  we  suppose  belongs  exclusively  to  religious  faith ; 
for  it  is  a  source  of  hope  in  trouble,  of  courage  in  conflict, 
and  of  triumph  in  death. 

In  short,  for  many  reasons,  our  religion  is  to  them  not 
only  incomprehensible,  but  revolting  and  absurd  ;  and  not 
merely  this  is  true,  but  the  conduct  of  those  who  offer  it, 
in  many  cases,  affords  the  strongest  arguments  against  it. 
Indians  are  quick  to  perceive  that  the  White  Man's  Book 
will  be  of  no  benefit  to  them,  since,  with  the  Sacred  Yol- 
ume  in  their  houses,  and  its  precepts  in  their  mouths,  they 
are  despoiled  of  their  possessions,  and  driven  from  their 
homes.  They  can  not  perceive  the  superiority  of  a  relig 
ion,  whose  professors  are  not  only  robbing  and  murdering, 
but  destroying  them  with  debauchery  and  drunkenness. 
How  should  they — ho\$  could  they — if  they  have  any 
sense  of  right  or  truth  in  them,  turn  from  the  religion  of 
their  Fathers,  and  from  the  hope  of  their  whole  lives,  for 
a  system  that  is  incomprehensible  to  their  intellect,  sub 
versive  of  their  interests,  and,  to  the  last  degree,  odious 
and  revolting  to  their  moral  consciousness  and  native  no 
bility  of  soul  ? 

We  shall  be  better  able  to  appreciate  the  force  of  their 
objections,  if  we  only  think  how  we  ourselves  should  feel, 
if  a  more  powerful  people  should  take  possession  of  our 
country,  spread  themselves  in  overwhelming  numbers  over 
our  cities  and  villages,  devouring  our  substance  and  treat 
ing  us  with  contempt,  and  at  the  same  time  requiring  us  to 
forsake  our  religion,  demolish  our  churches,  tear  down  our 
school-houses,  and  adopt  a  faith  which  we  could  not  com 
prehend,  and  ceremonies  and  habits  which  we  could  not 
approve.  Would  not  all  this  be  to  us  what  it  has  hereto 
fore  been  to  the  Natives  of  this  continent,  as  well  as  to 
the  Islanders  of  the  Pacific,  a  violence,  a  sacrilege,  and  a 
death-blow  ? 

Now  as  there  is  a  certain  correspondence  and  relation 
ship  in  all  things  naturally  associated,  it  follows  that  hu 
man  beings  must  be  somewhat  in  accordance  with  the 
surroundings  of  their  nativity  and  growth.  Hence,  geo 
graphical  characteristics  make  an  impress  upon  the  inhab- 


114  A  PLEA  FOB  THE  INDIANS. 

itants  of  every  clime.  It  is,  therefore,  not  possible,  that 
the  Indians,  inhaling  as  they  do,  an  atmosphere  of  re 
splendent  purity,  and  su'rrounded  by  objects  of  loveliness, 
of  which  they  are  close  and  attentive  observers,  can  be 
without  high  aspirations,  and  the  elements  of  intellectual 
and  moral  power  considerably  developed.  When  first 
visited  by  the  Whites,  they  were  a  numerous,  but  healthy 
and  happy  people,  divided  into  Tribes,  each  held  within 
its  own  acknowledged  limits,  but  all  united  for  general  de 
fense  and  common  national  interests.  They  had  their  laws 
and  officials,  and  a  government  adapted  to  their  circum 
stances.  They  were  credulous,  hopeful,  and  anxious  for 
improvement.  So  much,  indeed,  did  they  desire  this,  that, 
years  ago,  the  Churches  were  electrified  by  the  news  that  a 
Delegation  of  Indians  from  West  of  the  Kocky  Mountains 
had  come  to  the  States  for  Eeligious  Teachers.  Who  can 
conceive  the  extent  of  that  sacrilege,  when  vice  and  de 
pravity,  in  all  their -horrid  forms,  stalked  forth  into  such  a 
country,  and  among  such  a  people  ! 

Happy  should  I  be  if  I  could  leave  this  topic  without 
another  thought ;  but  having  witnessed  the  dire  effects  of 
error,  and  the  cruel  crushings  of  prejudice,  I  feel  that  a 
necessity  is  laid  upon  me  for  their  exposure.  It  seems 
strange,  but,  nevertheless,  it  is  true,  that  in  this  age  of 
light,  and  in  this  land  of  liberty,  men  have  spoken  and 
written,  have  preached  and  prayed  for  the  extermination 
of  the  Indians,  because,  forsooth,  they  are  Pagans  and  we 
are  Christians !  The  absurdity  of  this  will  appear,  if 
those  who  are  thus  engaged  would  consider  how  few  real 
Christians  there  are,  even  among  those  who  call  them 
selves  by  that  name  ;  and  how  monstrous  it  would  appear 
were  they  to  pray  for  their  removal  from  the  Earth  on  that 
account ! 

The  Indians  have  their  own  myths,  it  is  true  ;  but  they 
are  eminently  spiritual ;  and  we  should  not  condemn  them 
because  they  are  so  constituted  as  to  demand  rational  solu 
tions  of  whatever  is  presented  to  them  as  truth.  They 
read  intelligently  the  writing  of  the  Great  Spirit  in  all  ex 
terior  nature,  as  well  as*  in  the  human  soul.  The  tints  of 
the  flower,  the  cells  and  fibres  of  the  leaf,  the  granules  of 


A  PLEA  FOR  THE   INDIANS.  115 

the  rock,  and  the  veins  of  the  wood,  are  poems — hymns — 
sermons — not  of  unmeaning  and  lifeless  words,  that  fall 
coldly  on  the  ear,  like  flakes  of  spring  snow,  only  to  dissolve 
and  pass  away,  but  living  utterances  of  that  great  Interior 
Life,  which,  in  all  they  see,  and  hear,  and  know,  they  rec 
ognize,  and  honor,  and  adore.  This  great  sentiment  of 
veneration,  which  is,  in  itself,  a  fountain  of  love  and 
praise,  pervades  the  whole  character  of  the  true  Indian. 
It  informs,  it  inspires,  it  exalts  him.  Think,  then,  how 
impossible  it  must  be  for  him  to  exchange  this  august 
worship,  that  has  grown  with  his  growth,  and  strengthened 
with  his  strength,  for  any  of  those  dogmas,  which  are  so 
far  from  satisfying  Christianity  itself,  that  they  have  cut 
into  the  very  heart  of  the  Church,  dividing  it  into  hostile 
factions,  armed  with  deadly  hatred  against  each  other,  un 
til  its  history,  in  almost  eyery  age,  has  been  dyed  crimson 
with  the  blood  of  the  Faithful. 

Let  us,  then,  first  seek  to  conciliate  each  other,  that  WE 
may  meet  on  some  common  ground  of  toleration  and  good- 
fellowship  before  we  dare  to  brand  the  Indian  as  a  heathen, 
because  he  questions  any  or  all  of  those  dogmas  that  arc 
bandied  about  from  sect  to  sect,  and  made  brands  of  con 
tention  throughout  all  Christendom. 

I  do  not  wish  to  be  understood  as  holding  up  the  reli 
gious  creed  of  the  Indians  as  being  superior  to  Christianity, 
but  only  to  show  the  abundant  reason  there  is  for  liberality 
toward  them,  and  at  the  same  time  a  candid  consideration 
of  our  own  belief;  for  while  many  of  the  testimonies  which 
we  accept  without  a  question  as  valid  and  sole  evidences, 
were  derived  from  circumstances  and  documents  originating 
thousands  of  years  ago,  and  transmitted  through  many 
changing  and  dubious  channels,  the  Indian  gets  the  ele 
ments  of  his  faith  fresh  from  the  hand- writing  of  his  Maker. 
It  is  presented  to  him  in  the  ever-open  book  of  Nature. 
It  is  renewed  with  every  returning  spring;  and  comes 
forth  clear  and  bright  in  the  light  of  every  morning  sun. 


CHAPTER   XYI. 

DRUG-S,    AND    DRUG-    TREATMENT. 

I  SHOULD  not  do  justice  were  I  to  pass  unnoticed  another 
item  in  the  Report  of  the  Methodist  Committee  on  Mis 
sions,  to  which  I  have  already  given  some  attention.  It  is 
as  follows :  "  For  them  a  Whitman  and  his  devoted  wife  laid 
down  their  lives,  receiving  the  death-blow  from  the  murderous 
hands  of  those  who  were  the  objects  of  their  sincerest  benefac 
tions" 

In  the  connection  in  which  this  paragraph  stands  in  the 
Report,  it  would  seem  to  indicate  that  the  Indians  are  not 
only  ungrateful,  but  almost  fiend-like  in  their  wanton  and 
malignant  cruelty.  This  fact  is  made  one  of  the  strongest 
points  against  them,  by  their  enemies,  everywhere.  With 
out  saying  one  word,  at  present,  concerning  the  superior 
privileges  which  we,  as  a  civilized  and  Christian  people, 
enjoy,  of  killing  Indians  with  impunity,  and  at  pleasure, 
or  of  the  provocation,  real  or  supposed,  which  moved  them 
to  this  act,  it  will  be  only  necessary  to  glance  at  the  history 
of  all  Nations,  to  find  that  this  is  not  a  signal  instance. 
We  read  of  Prophets  being  slain,  and  Benefactors  and  Re 
formers  of  every  age  being  put  to  death.  There  is  hardly 
a  Christian  sect — at  least  of  the  old  orthodox  school — but 
has  had  its  victims  and  its  martyrs ;  and  if  the  robes  of  the 
Church  are  not  crimson  altogether,  it  is  only  because  the 
blood  stains  have  faded  away  in  the  darkness  of  remote 
time. 

I  have  even  now  before  me  in  papers  of  the  latest  dates, 
accounts  of  men,  both  black  and  white,  being  whipped  to 
death — not  killed  by  a  sudden  outbreak  of  impetuous  pas 
sion,  but  by  repeated  acts  of  deliberate  torture.  And  this 
cruel  outrage  was  not  inflicted  as  a  punishment  for  crimes. 


A  PLEA  FOE  THE  INDIANS.  117 

but  for  the  exercise  of  the  noblest  virtues — worthy  even  of 
La  Fayette,  and  other  patriots  who  aided  our  Fathers,  and 
whom  we  still  delight  to  honor — for  they  sought  to  lift  up 
and  re-enfranchise  the  plundered  bondman.  But  should 
we  not  consider  it  unjust  if  other  nations  should  be  con 
tinually  proclaiming  that  we,  as  a  whole  people,  are  guilty 
of  these  shameful  and  cowardly  deeds  ? 

In  the  case  of  Whitman,  the  murderers  suffered  the  pen 
alty  of  the  law,  the  Chiefs  exerting  themselves  for  their 
arrest,  and  the  whole  public  sentiment  among  them  de 
ploring  the  apparent  act  of  ingratitude  toward  those  whose 
memory  they  still  cherish  among  their  dearest  benefactors. 
It  is,  therefore,  not  only  unjust,  but  cruel  and  ungenerous 
to  stereotype  and  spread  abroad  this  story,  especially  as 
the  people  to  whose  prejudice  it  is  related  are  already  un 
deservedly  low  in  public  estimation,  and  have  no  means  of 
refuting  the  slander,  with  its  tacit  falsehood,  so  as  to  place 
themselves  in  a  true  position  before  the  public  mind. 

It  would  have  been  more  noble,  more  generous,  and 
every  way  more  worthy  of  a  true  "Christian  Advocate," 
to  keep  entire  silence,  not  only  about  the  Whitman  mur 
der,  but  in  regard  to  every  thing  about  the  Indians,  un 
less  it  would  give  the  palliating  as  well  as  the  aggravating 
causes  of  their  acts,  and  of  their  present  condition. 

Since  the  story  of  a  murdered  missionary  is  so  calculated 
to  induce  hardness,  and  justify  apathy  against  those  who 
are  supposed  to  be  so  desperately  depraved  and  ungrateful, 
it  is  worth  while  to  dwell  a  little  on  this  part  of  the  sub 
ject.  I  believe  that  no  circumstance  in  the  history  of  our 
Indian  Kelations  has  been  more  misunderstood  and  per 
verted  than  the  case  to  which  I  allude. 

As  a  preliminary,  I  will  observe  that  by  the  administra 
tion  of  poisons,  and  various  nostrums  under  the  name  of 
medicine,  which,  have  no  congeniality  with  life  and  health 
—a  vast,  and  even  incalculable  amount  of  misery  is  wrought 
in  the  world  ;  and,  taking  the  authority  of  some  who  stand 
among  the  highest  of  the  Medical  Profession,  we  may 
fairly  believe  that,  as  a  general  thing,  they  do  more  harm 
than  good. 

We  shall  now  see  how  it  was  that,  through  the  lament- 


118  A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS. 

able  error  of  this  practice,  the  good  Dr.  Whitman  lost  his 
life.  He  had  assiduously  devoted  himself  to  the  improve 
ment  of  the  Indians,  not  only;  in  Literature  and  Religion, 
but  also  in  the  culture  of  grains,  roots,  and  fruits,  and  in 
various  mechanic  arts.  They,  on  the  other  hand,  justly 
regarded  him  with  love  and  veneration,  as  their  best  friend ; 
and  though,  as  a  general  thing,  they  object  to  medicine, 
yet  such  was  their  confidence  that  they  occasionally  took 
it  from  his  hands. 

At  length  the  measles  became  prevalent  among  them ; 
and,  as  usual  with  malignant  types  under  drug  treatment, 
the  disease  was  very  fatal,  and  great  numbers  of  them 
died.  They  had  sometimes  been  imposed  upon  by  un 
principled  men,  and  this  fact  kept  their  suspicions  on  the 
alert.  At  one  time,  during  the  prevalence  of  the  small 
pox,  they  were  provided  with  bottles  of  water  flavored 
with  peppermint,  and  assured  of  its  efficiency  to  cure,  for 
which  they  were  defrauded  of  quite  a  number  of  horses ; 
but  they  had  too  much  sagacity  and  fineness  of  observation, 
not  to  perceive  the  imposition  very  soon,  and  too  strong  a 
sense  of  injustice  not  to  treasure  up  the  circumstance  in 
the  chronicles  of  their  unfailing  memory.  On  several 
occasions  they  have  been  purposely  poisoned  with  strych 
nine  ;  and  now  that  they  saw  Death  in  their  midst,  their 
little  children  and  their  strong  men  alike  perishing  before 
their  eyes,  it  "was  a  time  of  great  affliction  and  alarm. 

Dr.  Whitman,  though  well  beloved,  had,  nevertheless, 
outside  enemies,  some  of  whom  went  among  the  Tribes 
and  insinuated  that  his  medicines  poisoned  them,  offering 
to  demonstrate  the  fact.  A  portion  of  something,  said  to 
be  from  the  Doctor,  was  given  to  a  healthy  person ;  and  in 
a  few  minutes  he  was  dead. 

The  proof  was,  to  them,  indisputable ;  but  still  the  Chiefs 
demurred,  hesitating  to  enforce  the  law  under  which  their 
own  Medicine  Men,  in  every  case  where  there  is  the  least 
suspicion  of  a  failure  through  inefficiency  in  the  practi 
tioner,  are  put  to  death.  But  just  at  this  time  the  wife  ol 
one  of  their  head  men  died.  Frantic  with  grief  and  ex 
citement,  the  bereaved  husbaud  seized  an  axe,  and  with 
others  ran  to  the  mission-house  and  committed  the  fatal 


A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS.  119 

deed.  But  afterward  they  mourned  tlie  death  of  those 
whom  they  had  so  much  revered ;  and  to  this  day  the 
name  of  Whitman  is  cherished  with  affectionate  remem 
brance  by  the  Tribes  for  whom  he  labored. 

It  must  be  acknowledged  that  this  was  a  lamentable 
affair,  for  which  the  Indians  were  made  to  suffer  severely. 
But  taking  all  the  circumstances  into  consideration,  there 
are  some  palliations.  It  could  not,  at  the  worst,  have  been 
considered  murder  in  the  first  degree,  nor  would  it  have 
been  so  decided  by  an  impartial  Judge  in  any  Civil  Court. 
In  the  second  place,  it  was  only  an  outburst  of  popular 
excitement,  the  like  of  which  often  occurs  in  the;  States, 
and  was  especially  frequent  during  the  last  year  in  Kansas, 
and  south  of  the  Ohio  Kiver. 

But  there  is  another  consideration  of  still  greater  weight, 
and  that  is  the  almost  certainty,  that  the  Doctor  did  give 
drugs  of  a  poisonous  nature,  in  consequence  of  which  his 
patients  died.  Far  be  it  from  me  to  reflect  on  the  memory 
of  the  Blessed  in  an  unbecoming  manner ;  but  for  the  ben 
efit  of  the  Living  the  actions  of  the  Departed,  especially 
when  they  touch  upon  any  great  and  important  questions, 
may  be  properly  and  fairly  canvassed,  whether  they  appear 
right  or  wrong. 

Every  one  knows,  or  should  know,  that  the  Measles  is  a 
disease  that  shows  itself  upon  the  skin,  and  is  simply  a 
healthy  effort  of  the  life  principle  to  cast  off  the  impurity, 
and  4,hus  restore  the  body  to  health.  If  the  patient  i^  in 
the  exercise,  or  under  the  direction  of  common  sense,  he 
generally  gets  well  in  a  few  days,  and  is  really  better  for 
the  process.  The  skin  should  be  kept  clean  and  comfoita- 
ble,  by  frequent  and  thorough  ablutions,  with  abstinence 
in  diet,  and  a  plentiful  supply  of  drink,  such  as  catnip  tea, 
thin  gruel,  or  pure  water,  whichever  is  most  agreealie ; 
and  with  this  simple  treatment  there  seldom  occurs  eit  'ier 
danger  or  delay. 

The  usual  course  of  Drug  treatment  consits  of  nitre,,  or 
sulphur,  sometimes  drastic  purges,  with  a  blister  on  .'.he 
side,  the  lance  in  the  arm,  or  leeches  on  the  temples,  a  li*fcle 
morphine,  now  and  then,  io  allay  the  pain,  and  secure  si  jp, 
and  afterward  a  dose  of*calomel  and  jalap  to  move  he 


120  A  PLEA  FOR  THE   INDIANS. 

bowels,  with  occasional  doses  of  castor-oil  to  regulateHhe 
same  ;  nor  is  it  to  be  wondered"  at  that  by  this  mode  the 
patient  is  always  injured  and  sometimes  killed  outright. 
Thus  Dr.  Whitman,  with  hosts  of  other  learned  Doctors, 
with  the  best  intentions  toward  the  human  family,  has  yet 
unwittingly  cursed  it  with  a  medical  practice  by  which 
thousands  are  annually  sent  to  untimely  graves,  while  the 
minds  of  the  living  are  beclouded  with  error. 

In  proof  that  this  is  not  a  mere  assertion,  I  appeal  to  the 
Law  and  to  the  Testimony.  Here  we  shall  find  that  Moses 
prescribed  nothing  more  than  wholesome  diet,  fresh  air, 
and  frequent  ablutions,  with  a  few  simple  observances  de 
signed  to  aid  the  faith  of  the  sufferer.  Even  that  terrible 
scourge,  the  leprosy,  to  which  the  Jews  had  been  subject, 
was  effectually  subdued  by  these  means.  The  Assyrian 
Captain  was  directed  to  wash  in  Jordan,  and  was  made 
whole. 

And  of  all  the  cures  that  took  place  under  the  ministra 
tions  of  the  Apostles,  or  of  Christ,  no  prescriptions  of 
drugs  were  given,  and  nothing  but  faith  in  the  recupera 
tive  power  of  Nature,  under  proper  influences,  was  re 
quired.  It  is  true  that  on  one  occasion  Jesus  spat  on  clay, 
and  anointed  the  eyes  of  a  blind  man ;  and  doubtless  in 
the  absence  of  a  pocket-handkerchief,  or  napkin  dipped  in 
water,  a  little  cold,  moistened  clay  was  the  most  natural 
means  for  the  cure  of  inflamed  eyes.  But  even  here  faith 
was  a  prerequisite ;  and  hence  the  question,  "  Dost  J^hou 
believe  I  can  do  this  ?" 

I  would  observe  here  that  anciently,  both  among  Jews 
and  Gentiles,  the  healing  art  was  associated  with  the 
Priesthood.  Jesus  also  inculcated  the  same  thing;  and 
hence,  when  he  gave  his  last  solemn  commission  to  his 
successors,  he  coupled  "  healing  the  sick"  with  "  preaching 
the  Gospel."  Both  were  commanded  in  the  same  breath, 
the  one  just  as  much  as  the  other. 

There  is  reason  to  believe  that  the  healing  of  the  sick 
was  an  important  part  of  the  Gospel  dispensation,  and 
while  I  am  writing  this,  I  am  impressed  with  the  thought, 
that  the  amelioration  of  man's  physical  condition,  was  the 
first  object  aimed  at  both  in  the 'mission  and  the  command 


A   PLEA    FOP.   THE    INDIANS.  121 

of  Jesus  Christ.  Of  course  intellectual  elevation  and  spirit 
ual  life  were  contemplated  as  ulterior  and  necessary  results 
When  John  wished  to  know  whether  Jesus  was  the  Christ, 
the  proofs  given  in  answer  were,  that  the  Deaf  heard,  the 
Lame  walked,  the  Blind  saw,  and  the  Poor  had  the  Gospel 
preached  to  them. 

It  is  evident  from  this,  that  the  true  Gospel  was  origi 
nally  supposed  to  consist  in  works  of  active  goodness — in 
physical,  as  well  as  spiritual  renovation.  Unfortunately, 
this  fact  seems  to  be  almost  wholly  lost  sight  of  by  modern 
Teachers,  who  would  find,  by  experiment,  that  the  use  of 
soap  andjvater,  with  a  competent  knowledge  of  the  sim 
plest  laws  of  life  and  health,  would  be  powerful  adjuncts 
to  their  Creeds  and  Catechisms,  and  should,  in  fact,  precede 
them,  since,  in  the  true  order  of  development,  the  man 
must  be  unfolded  before  the  Christian.  Otherwise,  the 
natural  law  of  growth  is  subverted ;  and  foliage,  flowers, 
and  fruit  are  unseasonably  expected,  before  the  root  and 
trunk  have  had  time  to  grow. 

We  read  of  the  Prophets,  and  especially  Moses,  who 
wrote  the  Law,  and  fixed  the  penalties.  In  his  earnestness 
to  secure  obedience,  he  brought  to  bear  all  the  social  and 
natural  evils  that  imagination  could  conceive  of;  and  yet 
he  never  seems  to  have  thought  of  any  thing  farther  than 
those  just  retributions,  which  are  the  fruit  of  wrong.  Sin 
brings  its  own  punishment.  The  penalty  can  not  be 
escaped ;  and  is  not  this  simple  truth  better  calculated  to 
inspire  sentiments  of  justice,  and  respect  for  the  Divine 
Government,  than  all  the  exaggerations  that  language  can 
express  of  an  angry  God,  and  endless  torture?  It  is, 
therefore,  but  reasonable  to  infer,  that  the  figurative  lan 
guage  of  Scripture  has  been  perverted,  in  the  dark  ages, 
by  those  who  were  too  ignorant  and  selfish  to  apply  the 
Gospel  for  the  benefit  of  the  people  at  large,  particularly 
the  poor  and  the  suffering,  to  whom  it  was  especially  sent ; 
and,  as  aside  from  this,  there  was  no  apparent  object  for 
which  it  need  be  preached,  one  was  invented  for  the  occa 
sion.  On  the  low  plane  of  thought  and  feeling  to  which 
it  was  addressed,  combining  the  darkness  and  violence  of 


122  A    PLEA  FOE  THE  INDIAN'S. 

the  feudal  character,  with  the  revengeful  spirit  of  Heathen 
Myths  out  of  which  the  human  mind  had,  as  yet,  hardly 
grown,  this  revolting  idea  was  but  too  well  received. 

We  have  already  seen  that  the  Indians  have  a  creed  and 
a  faith  which  should  command  respect,  and  that  no  substi 
tute  which  Sectarians  has  presented  could  be  of  benefit  to 
them.  We  have  also  seen  that  the  medical  practice,  as 
exhibited  by  Dr.  Whitman,  was  followed  by  the  most  dis 
astrous  results,  and  that  it  was  contrary  both  to  Moses  and 
Christ.  The  following  quotation,  which  I  take  from  a 
medical  work  now  before  me,  will  show  that  the  Indians 
are  more  true  to  nature  in  the  treatment  of  disease,  and 
therefore  more  successful  than  some  of  their  White  In 
structors. 

Dr.  Gilbert  B.  Champlin,  formerly  of  the  United  States 
Army,  says :  "  In  the  year  1813,  while  the  army  lay  near 
to  Buffalo,  a  body*  of  friendly  Indians  were  encamped  at 
no  great  distance  from  the  main  army.  Information  was 
received  that  the  small-pox  had  broken  out  among  them, 
and  that  three  or  four  of  the  surgeons,  or  mates,  were  to 
be  detached  to  go  and  attend  upon  them.  The  order  soon 
came,  and  I  chanced  to  be  one  of  the  number.  We  re 
paired  with  promptness  to  the  Indian  camp,  and  com 
menced  our  medical  treatment,  according  to  the  Books; 
for  at  that  time  I  knew  nothing  but  what  I  learned  from 
recognized  authorities.  Cathartics,  febrifuges,  diaphore-. 
tics,  etc.,  etc.,  were  given,  in  hopes  to  allay  the  violence 
of  the  virus.  But  we  soon  found  ourselves  in  trouble, 
from  a  new  and  unexpected  circumstance. 

"  In  spite  of  all  our  exertions,  some  of  the  Indians  would 
go  and  plunge  head  foremost  into  a  neighboring  creek  of 
cold  water,  in  some  instances  when  the  eruption  was  at  its 
height.  We  remonstrated  with  the  Chiefs  of  the  Tribes. 
We  begged  and  entreated  them  to  prevent  such  awful 
practices.  We  told  them  they  would  surely  die,  but  all 
such  persuasions  proved  of  no  avail.  They  continued  the 
bath  daily  in  spite  of  us. 

"  It  was  finally  arranged  that  I  should  be  despatched 
to  the  Surgeon-Greneral,  to  lay.our  grievances  before  him, 
and  obfain  his  instructions  on  the  matter.  I  accordingly 


A  PLEA  FOE  THE  INDIANS.  123 

waited  upon  him,  and  told  Mm  that  nearly  half  our 
patients  were  plunging  into  cold  water,  once  or  twice  daily. 
He  agreed  with  me  that  they  would  stand  a  great  chance 
to  die,  saying,  at  the  same  time,  '  They  are  an  untameable 
set  of  creatures.  You  must  go  back,  sir,  and  do  with 
them  the  best  you  can/  I  immediately  returned,  and  con 
tinued  treatment  according  to  the  Books.  But  in  spite  of 
our  learning,  power,  and  skill,  a  number  that  we  treated 
died.  But  to  the  astonishment  of  us  all,  every  one  of  them 
that  plunged  into  cold  water  recovered !  Their  skin  was  less 
pitted,  and  they  came  up  strong  and  welV 

I  knew  of  a  Tribe  in  '52,  among  whom  the  venereal  dis 
ease  was  prevalent.  The  males  refused  to  take  medicine, 
but  bathed  frequently  and  got  well ;  while  the  females  took 
medicine.  Many  of  them  died,  and  none  got  really  well. 

I  was  also  informed  that  after  the  Indians  were  collected 
upon  the  Keserve  in  the  Willamette  last  summer,  '56,  Dys 
entery,  in  its  worst  form,  became  very  prevalent,  and  more 
than  one  hundred  died.  Dr.  H.  prescribed  the  usual  med 
icines,  but  with  no  benefit,  and  at  length  ceased  to  give 
any.  It  was  then  found  that  the  chance  for  recovery  was 
better  without  medicine  than  with. 

But  as  this  unhappy  affair,  the  putting  to  death  of  Dr. 
Whitman  and  his  lady  has  been  so  often  published,  and 
always  with  a  one-sided  view,  let  us  now  look  at  the  other 
side  ;  and  in  this  view  we  vindicate  the  avengers ;  for  we 
see  that  the  Doctor's  practice  was  what  one  eminent  Phy~ 
sician  pronounces  "A  system  of  guess-work  and  Murder,"  of 
which  another  says:  "Under  it  Diseases  have  multiplied, 
and  become  more  incurable;"  and  still  another  affirms,  "  that 
if  all  the  Drug  Doctors,  and  all  the  Drugs  on  the  Globe  were 
annihilated,  mankind  would  have  less  disease  and  fewer  pre 
mature  deaths.'1'1 

With  such  testimony,  is  it  not  fair  to  presume  that  the 
Indians  were  impelled  to  the  act  by  the  dictates  of  con 
science,  as  well  as  by  the  first  great  law  of  self-preserva 
tion  ?  They  saw  their  fellows  dying  all  around,  without 
any  palpable  cause,  except  what  emanated  from  the  Mis 
sion  House.  It  would  be  quite  natural  for  them  to  con 
clude  that  they  had  a  right  to  save  themselves  from 


124  A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS. 

destruction  by  destroying  their  Destroyer.  It  uas  not  a 
savage  outrage  in  their  view,  but  the  execution  of  just 
law — a  law  which  would  have  been  put  in  force,  for  less 
occasion,  upon  one  of  their  own  Physicians. 

And  let  us  bear  in  mind  that  the  Indians  feel  their  right, 
as  an  independent  people,  to  Self-Government,  and  that 
the  power  assumed  over  them  by  others  is  only  that  of 
might,  and  therefore  not  acknowledged  as  right.  And, 
after  all,  what  did  they  do  in  the  case,  except  in  the  man 
ner  of  its  execution,  more  than  what  we  should  do  ?  Let 
us  suppose  a  foreign  Doctor  should  come  into  our  midst, 
and  with  a  great  show  of  learning  gain  the  public  con 
fidence,  and,  under  pretense  of  healing  their  maladies, 
kill  them  by  dozens,  should  we  not  have  him  arrested  so 
soon  as  found  out?  and  if  it  was  proven  that  he  adminis 
tered  nostrums,  which  his  own  countrymen  avowed  were 
the  occasion  of  diseases  and  death,  even  though  given  for 
remedial  use,  should  we  not  hang  him  ?  especially  if  the 
articles  were  such  as  are  not  found  in  our  Medical  Books. 
Indeed,  it  is  probable  that  if  such  a  case  should  occur 
in  some  parts  of  our  country,  a  doom  more  terrible,  per 
haps  whipping,  or  burning  to  death,  would  be  his  fate. 

It  is  proper,  in  this  connection,  to  notice  another  of  the 
fruits  of  bigotry,  in  the  bitter  and  cruel  aspersions  that 
have  been,  through  these  relations,  cast  on  the  Catholic 
Priesthood,  who  were,  in  some  instances,  almost  as  great 
sufferers  as  the  Indians  themselves.  This  is  particularly 
true  of  Father  Pandozy,  a  most  worthy  man  and  devoted 
minister,  who,  like  a  good  shepherd,  followed  his  flock  af 
ter  their  dispersion.  For  this  very  reason  he  was  perse 
cuted  by  those  who  were  seeking  only  to  destroy ;  and  on 
the  petty  pretense  that  he  was  in  league  with  the  Enemy, 
because  powder  was  found  in  the  Mission  House  after  they 
had  left,  he  was  denounced  as  a  traitor ;  and  could  he  have 
been  caught,  would  have  received  the  summary  treatment 
of  one  so  defined.  But  through  great  suffering  he  escaped ; 
and  since,  I  have  been  informed  by  a  respectable  Trader, 
that  no  more  powder  was  found  among  the  Catholics  than 
had  often  been  sold  to  other  missionary  stations,  in  similar 
circumstances,  where  a  quantity  is  always  necessary,  to  aid 
the  Indians  in  procuring  a  subsistence. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

REMEDIAL  MEASURES  PROPOSED. 

HAVING  presented  some  of  the  more  prominent  causes 
of  Indian  difficulties,  let  us  now  see  what  can  be  done  to 
prevent  their  recurrence.  The  short  answer  would  be  "to 
do  justly."  This  would  include  every  possible  facility  for 
their  improvement,  as  an  equivalent  for  what  we  have 
taken  from  them. 

First,  there  should  be  appropriated  to  them  a  sufficient 
portion  of  suitable  land,  adapted  to  their  highest  progress 
in  agriculture,  and  all  the  arts  of  civilization.  There 
should  be  means  provided  for  the  improvement  of  their 
respective  Eeserves,  in  such  a  manner  as,  not  only  to  fur 
nish  ample  support  in  all  the  necessaries  of  life,  and  the  best 
stimulants  to  useful  occupation,  but  power  to  attain  the 
luxurious  and  the  beautiful,  at  least  so  far  as  abundant 
fruits,  science,  and  artistic  skill  in  agriculture  and  horti 
culture,  could  enrich  and  embellish  their  country.  This 
policy  would  have  a  twofold  advantage;  it  would  make 
home  attractive,  and  thereby  dispense  with  the  necessity 
of  armed  troops  and  forts  to  keep  them  together,  while,  at 
the  same  time,  it  would  cultivate  their  higher  faculties, 
and  afford  a  happier  and  easier  transit  from  the  savage  to 
the  civilized  condition. 

To  do  all  this  properly,  it  is  obvious  that  a  sufficient 
number,  and  the  right  kind  of  men,  should  be  employed. 
This  is  a  consideration  of  vital  importance;  for  if  the 
officials  have  not  the  requisite  qualities,  natural  and  ac 
quired,  for  taking  the  lead  in  such  a  work,  as  well  as  abil 
ity  to  impart  instruction  both  in  Science  and  Government, 
any  amount  of  expenditure  must  result  in  utter  failure. 
Hence  the  Agencies  should  not  be  mere  sinecures,  as  at 


126  A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS. 

present,  and  there  should  be  no  occasion  of  public  com 
plaints  like  the  following,  which  I  take  from  the  Western 
tStcmdard,  published  at  San  Francisco,  November  15, 1856 : 

"  The  poor  Indians  of  this  region  are  in  a  really  suffer 
ing  state ;  and  humanity  demands  that  something  should 
be  done  to  ameliorate  their  condition,  and  save  them,  not 
only  from  being  decimated  by  disease,  but  from  final  ex 
tinction. 

"  We  have  an  Indian  Eeserve  in  the  State,  and  an  Indian 
Agent  employed  by  the  United  States  Government,  to 
look  after  the  remnant  of  the  Aborigines  of  our  country. 
Why  is  it  that  no  attention  is  paid  to  those  hereabouts  by 
F.  J.  Henley  Esq.,  the  Indian  Agent  for  the  General  Gov 
ernment  ?  We  beg  to  call  his  attention  to  the  sufferings 
of  the  poor  Digger  Indians  in  this  part  of  the  country. 
Many  of  their  children  are  sprightly,  and  as  susceptible  of 
mental  culture  as  our  own.  What  is  wanted  is,  to  have 
the  fostering  arm  of  the  Government  thrown  around 
them." 

The  Agents  should  have  a  sympathetic  feeling  for  the 
objects  of  their  care,  and  a  nice  sense  of  justice,  which,  of 
itself,  could  prompt  them  to  the  full  discharge  of  all  the 
duties  required  at  their  hands.  And,  as  they  are  so  far 
from  the  appointing  power  and  the  center  of  responsibility, 
with  the  interests  of  so  many  depending  on  their  faithful 
ness,  the  utmost  means  that  experience  and  science  can 
devise  should  be  combined,  to  insure  the  appointment  of 
men  who  are  both  able  and  honest. 

If  the  science  of  Phrenology  does,  indeed,  indicate  and 
explain  character,  then  every  person  employed  in  offices  of 
trust,  should  first  be  approved  by  a  qualified  Professor ; 
and  if  none  were  employed,  but  such  as  have  the  requisite 
amount  of  benevolence,  conscientiousness  and  intellect, 
combined  with  experience,  there  would  be  no  misapplica 
tion  of  means,  and  no  cause  of  complaint. 

The  Agencies  should  not  consist  of  men  alone,  but  also 
of  women  and  children — whole  families — such  as  practi 
cally  understand  physiological  and  social  law,  with  warm 
hearts  and  benevolent  impulses.  Such  as  these  would  be 
come  angels  of  love  and  power.  They  would  feel  a  sacred 


A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS.  127 

joy  in  becoming  the  centers  of  domestic  virtues,  around 
which  latent  faculties  would  be  called  forth,  to  expand  and 
multiply,  to  enrich  and  beautify  the  whole.  And  as  the 
choicest  gems  are  found  amid  roughest  rocks,  so  harmony 
and  grace,  intelligence  and  power,  would  shine  forth  from 
these,  as  yet,  undeveloped  minds. 

For  this  purpose  all  the  best  means  of  elevation  and  r<? 
finement  should  be  amply  furnished,  and  all  that  could  in 
cite  and  draw  out  the  intellect  to  its  highest  effort,  brough* 
within  the  scope  of  the  recognized  and  normal  plan  of 
operations. 

These  people  are  naturally  dignified,  with  self  esteem 
well  developed.  This  should  be  truly  directed,  and 
through  it  cherished  the  native  honor  of  the  Indian, 
which,  even  in  his  primitive  state,  scorns  to  do  a  mean 
ness.  Under  wise  and  loving  influences  it  would  expand 
into  nobleness  that  would  make  his  character  an  archetype 
of  manhood.  But  degrade  and  destroy  this  feeling,  and 
the  consequent  reaction  carries  him  as  far  below ;  and  he 
drops  into  a  miserable,  groveling  wretch,  who  yet  can 
not  assimilate  with  the  slave ;  for  the  most  degraded  In 
dian  seems  to  have  an  everlasting  sense  of  what  he  once 
was. 

Both  the  fine  and  useful  arts  should  be  encouraged,  and 
cultivated  among  them,  and  especially  such  as  create  a 
sense  of  personal  improvement  and  advantage.  For  this 
reason  good  Dressmakers  and  Tailors  should  be  employed 
as  missionaries,  to  assist  them  in  the  art  of  self-culture, 
This  would  furnish  agreeable  employment,  gratify  their 
natural  taste,  and  do  more  to  advance  their  civilization 
than  all  the  catechisms  in  Christendom. 

The  magnificent  scenery  of  their  varied  hills  and  valleys, 
their  majestic  mountains  and  forests,  their  silvery  streams, 
their  verdant  groves  and  meadows,  have  naturally  inspired 
them  with  a  love  of  the  beautiful ;  hence  they  should  be 
taught  the  art  of  Painting.  This  would  refine,  by  deep 
ening  the  impressions  of  external  beauty,  and  thus  lead 
them 

"  To  look  through  Nature  up  to  Nature's  God." 

Again,  the  Indians  have  a  great  deal  of  invention,  and 


128  A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS. 

skill  in  hand-craft;  and  to  make  capital  of  this,  there 
should  be  Mechanics  to  instruct  them  in  every  species  of 
useful  labor,  so  introduced  and  arranged  as  to  make  it 
pleasant ;  for  we  should  no  more  expect  them  at  once,  and 
willingly,  to  subject  themselves  to  dry  and  severe  toil  and 
drudgery  than  we  would  those  of  our  fellow-citizens  of 
the  South,  whose  hands  have  never  been  hardened  by 
toil.  In  short,  I  see  no  reason  why  they  should  not  be 
directly  taught  all  the  higher  branches  of  science,  but  es 
pecially  the  different  departments  of  Natural  History, 
which  would  be  peculiarly  attractive  and  congenial  to 
their  habits  and  character.  If  they  have  minds  capable 
of  grasping  the  alphabet,  and  that,  too,  with  a  power  which 
some  of  them  have  already  shown,  they  would  be  able  to 
attain  every  thing  attainable  by  us — to  unlock  all  mental 
treasures  of  which  that  alphabet  is  the  key. 

They  should  be  invested  with  the  highest  possible  de 
gree  of  freedom ;  and  while  they  are  protected  by  our 
Authorities,  they  should  be  encouraged  and  incited  to 
emulation,  in  the  manly  and  human  ideal  of  Self-Govern 
ment.  They  should  be  instructed  in  proper  forms,  with 
full  liberty  to  establish  their  own  institutions,  and  elect 
their  own  officers. 

I  would  recommend  that  all  mysticism  in  Theology 
sliould  be  kept  entirely  away  from  them,  and  that  they  be 
taught  only  plain,  practical,  Christian  truth.  Let  us  give 
them,  not  only  in  words,  but  in  all  our  actions,  the  spirit 
of  the  Golden  Eule.  This  they  can  easily  appreciate,  and 
will  be  ready  to  accept,  because  its  law  is  not  one-sided, 
but  mutual ;  for  in  requiring  me  to  be  just  and  kind  to  all, 
it  equally  requires  that  every  human  being  should  be  just 
and  kind  to  me.  If  this  teaching  had  no  direct  practical 
advantage,  it  would  yet  be  of  inestimable  value,  as  a  means 
of  unfolding  the  higher  faculties ;  and  opening  fountains 
of  pure  and  exalted  pleasure,  it  would  at  once  develop 
and  satiate  with  its  own  proper  enjoyments,  the  true  nature 
of  man.  I  submit  that  if  this  Rule  should  be  taught,  not 
only  to  the  Indians,  but  to  other  people,  as  a  cardinal  doc 
trine,  instead  of  some  others  which  are  considered  as  such, 
it  would  be  a  vast  benefit  to  all  mankind. 


A  PLEA  FOB  THE   INDIANS.  129 

Setting  aside  all  special  applications  of  faith  in  creeds, 
we  believe  and  know  that  our  great  Teacher  and  Exemplar 
went  about  doing  good,  not  only  rebuking  sin  in  high 
places,  but  healing  the  sick  and  binding  up  the  broken 
hearted.  He  preached  "  deliverance  to  the  captive,  and 
the  opening  of  the  prison-doors  to  them  that  were  bound," 
and  finally  laid  down  his  life  to  confirm  and  seal  his  doc 
trines,  thus  literally  becoming  the  Saviour  of  men.  And 
if  those  who  profess  to  be  his  followers  had  gone  up  and 
down  the  valleys  of  Oregon,  imbued  with  a  spirit  akin  to 
that  which  he  manifested  in  traversing  the  mountains  and 
valleys  of  Judea,  what  different  results  should  we  now 
have  realized !  But  so  far  were  many  of  his  representa 
tives  from  exhibiting  his  spirit,  that  if  he  could  have  ap 
peared  there  bodily,  with  his  own  Grospel,  just  as  he  taught 
it  eighteen  hundred  years  ago,  they  would  have  been  among 
the  foremost  to  urge  a  second  crucifixion ;  for  by  generally 
taking  part  against  every  principle  of  humanity,  they  have 
virtually  confirmed  this  declaration.  Christ,  himself,  de 
clares  thus  concerning  similar  circumstances,  "  Inasmuch 
as  ye  have  done  wrong  unto  the  least  of  these,  ye  have 
done  it  unto  me."  I  can  not,  therefore,  do  otherwise  than 
repeat  my  solemn  conviction,  that  the  pure  Gospel  has 
been  but  partially  preached,  and  that  the  Indians  have 
never  had  any  thing  worthy  of  its  name. 

To  assure  any  candid  mind  of  this,  we  need  only  refer 
to  the  Eeports  of  the  Missionaries  themselves,  some  ex 
tracts  from  which  have  already  been  given  in  this  work 
The  general  spirit  that  pervades  them  is  remarkable  for 
want  of  faith  in  their  own  ministry.  A  truly  appreciating 
kindness,  the  most  powerful  means  of  persuasion,  is  set 
aside.  In  some  of  these  documents  the  Indians  are  repre 
sented,  not  only  as  low,  brutish,  unreclaimable  heathen, 
but  as  the  most  diabolic  and  ungrateful  of  mortals.  Never 
theless,  I  believe  that  every  person  who  has  tried  the 
power  of  kindness,  and  recognized  them  humanly,  could 
furnish  abundant  testimony  that  all  these  conclusions  are 
false  to  the  spirit  of  our  religion,  as  they  are  cruel  and 
unjust  to  the  Indians. 

In  our  dealing  with  them,  it  is  very  important  to  dL« 


130  A  PLEA  FOE  THE   INDIANS. 

courage,  as  far  as  possible,  not  only  the  use  of  Tobacco  and 
Alcoholic  Drinks,  but  Drug  Medicine.  The  use  of  the  lat 
ter  is  a  fruitful  source  of  evil  among  them ;  and  thousands 
yearly  fall  victims  to  this  infatuation,  which  not  only  de 
stroys  great  numbers,  but  vitiates  the  constitutions,  and  de 
praves  the  minds  of  those  that  are  left  behind.  The  culture 
of  fruits,  and  the  use  of  vegetable  food,  with  unbolted 
wheat,  should  be  encouraged  among  them,  while  their  own 
simple  remedial  processes  should  be  improved  by  the  use 
of  all  hygienic  agencies. 

In  looking  over  the  history  of  mankind,  we  see  that 
public  evils  have  only  been  checked  by  decided  charac 
ters,  as  in  the  case  of  Noah,  Lot,  Moses,  and  Daniel,  each 
of  whom  was  distinguished,  chiefly,  because  his  compeers 
failed  to  do  their  duty.  If  it  were  not  for  ignorance  and 
cruelty,  there  would  be  no  occasion  for  martyrs  and  re 
formers.  But  so  long  as  those  who  should  be  the  lights 
of  the  world,  and  the  salt  of  the  earth,  hide  their  light,  and 
lose  their  savor,  reformers  will  be  in  demand,  and  martyrs 
will  not  cease. 

I  will  neither  judge  nor  condemn  any  one  for  a  differ 
ence  of  opinion ;  but  when  I  know  that  there  is  scarcely  a 
man,  whether  east  or  west  of  the  Mountains,  but,  when 
free  from  the  influence  of  fear  and  interest,  will  acknowl 
edge  that  we  are  doing  great  injustice  to  the  Indians,  I 
ask,  Why  we  do  it ;  or  why  should  we  allow  others  to  do 
it,  and  not  rebuke  them? 

I  have  thus  far  considered  the  subject  in  its  prejudicial 
bearing  upon  the  Indians ;  but  it  has  another  aspect,  which 
we  must  not  pass  unnoticed.  "Wrongs  of  such  a  nature 
and  magnitude  as  those  we  have  been  discussing,  imply 
the  existence  and  culture  of  corresponding  propensities; 
and  as  these  are  selfish  and  destructive  in  their  nature, 
gratification  being  the  primary  object,  victims  must  be 
had.  The  thirst  for  blood,  and  the  desire  for  rapine,  may 
be  indulged  until  they  become  the  ruling  passion.  Hence, 
all  wars,  and  even  rumors  of  wars,  are  so  many  lessons 
and  schools,  in  which  the  minds  of  men  are  incited  to  vio 
lence. 

But  not  only  is  the  loss  of  moral  principle  apparent  in 


A  PLEA  FOE  THE  INDIANS.  131 

these  open  outbreaks,  but  also  in  a  general  tendency  to 
corruption.  The  elective  franchise  is  bought  and  sold,  and 
the  public  trust  perverted  for  private  emolument ;  and  in 
stead  of  truth  and  justice  being  the  glory  of  the  people,  the 
spoils  of  party  become,  to  a  great  extent,  the  objects  of 
their  highest  ambition.  In  pursuance  of  this  idea,  I  dare 
affirm,  that  if  the  people  of  Oregon  had  openly  avowed 
their  absolute  moral  convictions,  there  would  have  been 
no  war,  and  mutual  murders  would  have  been  few  and  far 
between.  Let  us  suppose  that  the  individual  fortunes  of 
the  citizens  had  depended  on  the  perpetuity  of  peace  and 
the  preservation  of  the  Indians,  and  we  can  not  but  see, 
through  all  that  they  have  done  under  other  circumstances, 
that  they  would,  at  least  on  the  outside  of  things,  have  ri 
valed  William  Penn  and  the  early  Quakers  in  their  san 
ative  and  beneficent  schemes.  If  fortunes  had  been 
pledged  to  them,  as  a  result  of  pacific  measures,  almost 
every  man  west  of  the  Eocky  Mountains  would  have  ven 
tured  all  he  was,  and  all  he  had,  for  their  support -and 
preservation.  Of  those  who  have  passively  continued  this 
war,  multitudes  must  have  known  that  the  desire  of  gain 
lay  at  the  bottom.  There  were,  doubtless,  feelings  of  pa 
triotism,  and  a  desire  of  self-preservation,  operating  to  a 
certain  extent ;  but  they  must  have  been  sadly  shorn  of 
their  luster,  in  the  relationships  with  every  species  of 
wrong  that  were  forced  upon  them. 

And  now  the  question  presents  itself  before  us  in  a  more 
general  sense.  Why  is  it  that  our  Government,  so  young 
and  vigorous  as  it  is,  based  upon  eternal  truth,  and  capable 
of  such  vast  expansion  and  unqualified  greatness,  should 
so  soon  show  symptoms  of  declining  strength;  and,  like 
many  Nations  and  perished  Empires  that  have  gone  be 
fore,  already  anticipate  its  own  dissolution? 

Think  not,  because  the  subject  we  have  been  discussing 
relates  directly  to  the  people  west  of  the  Rocky  Mount 
ains,  that,  therefore,  they  alone  are  at  fault,  or  that  they 
have  inherently  less  regard  for  the  social  law  and  moral 
rectitude  than  their  brethren  in  the  States,  The  evil  is,"  I 
apprehend,  of  general  prevalence,  and  has  only  been  more 
apparent  beyond  the  Plains,  on  account  of  special  condi- 


132  A  PLEA   FOR  THE  INDIANS. 

tions.  Our  Government,  which  was  established  by  its 
founders  to  secure  liberty  and  justice  for  all  under  its  con 
trol,  has  been  perverted  from  its  true  and  primal  purpose, 
so  that  not  only  Indians,  but  millions  of  other  natives  of 
the  soil,  have  been  robbed  of  their  birthright.  Our  Fath 
ers  were  great  and  good.  They  espoused  true  principles, 
aiming  a  death-blow  at  a  great  evil.  But  having  failed  to 
quite  kill  it,  the  roots  have  spread,  and  their  ramifications 
absorb  the  nurture,  and  sap  the  vitality  of  our  whole  so 
cial  system.  It  has  become  a  deadly  Upas,  overshadow 
ing  the  whole  Land ;  and  though  one  section  tries  to  cut  it 
down,  it  is,  nevertheless,  cultivated  in  another.  It  blooms 
in  our  Legislative  Halls ;  it  has  an  offset  in  Kansas,  and 
bears  fruit  in  Oregon.  It  has  afflicted  our  people  with 
moral  obtuseness,  so  that  they  stumble  over  lines  which 
the  Creator  has  established  between  man  and  man,  and 
claim  extension  of  privilege  for  themselves,  by  infringing 
on  the  rights  of  their  fellows. 

In.  some  sections  of  our  wide  domain,  the  Declarations 
of  our  Fathers  are  disgraced  and  falsified ;  and  professed 
Republicans  have  resolved  themselves  into  a  many-headed 
monster,  crushing  the  weaker  Races,  and  enacting  the 
petty  despotism  of  home  tyrants.  The  common  bonds  of 
fellowship  and  good  faith  are  thus  destroyed,  so  that  every 
man  is  afraid  of  his  neighbor.  Freedom  of  Speech  and 
of  the  Press  is  but  a  name — a  something  that  has  almost 
forgotten  that  it  WAS,  so  thoroughly  is  it  rooted  out, 
while,  at  the  same  time,  moral  cowardice  is  gloried  in,  as 
if  it  were  a  virtue ;  and  he  who  dares  to  utter  his  convic 
tions  for  Truth  and  Humanity,  is  punished  as  one  who 
commits  a  breach  of  the  peace.  What  else  but  this  de 
parture  from  fundamental  principles  incites  to  aggression 
and  all  inhuman  violence?  Central  America  and  the 
Isles  of  the  Sea  are  made  to  feel  it,  while  the  massacre  in 
Panama  and  the  war  in  Oregon  are  its  results.  And  so 
long  as  our  people  deny,  to  any  class  or  color,  the  com 
mon  rights  of  mankind,  human  sympathy  and  the  full 
protection  of  Government,  neither  peace  nor  prosperity 
can  be  made  permanent ;  and  our  own  rights  will  not  be 
secure. 


A  PLEA  FOR  THE    INDIANS.  133 

Millions  upon  millions  have  been  spent  in  war,  where  a 
few  thousands,  rightly  employed,  would  have  preserved 
peace ;  and  millions  more  will  be  thrown  away,  unless  dif 
ferent  counsels  prevail.  This  subject  appeals  to  the  Nation 
for  a  higher  level  of  public  sentiment.  It  tells  us  that  no 
mere  local  measures  will  prevent  a  continued  recurrence  of 
social  wrongs.  Nothing  less  than  a  National  reaffirmation 
of  the  equal  rights  of  ALL,  and  the  administration  of  im 
partial  laws  to  sustain  them,  can  inspire  a  reasonable  hope 
of  permanent  peace. 

And,  finally,  let  us  listen  to  a  voice  from  fallen  victims, 
from  bereaved  families,  and  blackened  ruins,  and  be 
warned  !  -All  these  things  are  significant.  If  we  are 
wise  we  shall  take  note  of  them.  Let  us  heed  the  dumb 
remonstrances  that  come  to  us,  the  avowed  defenders  of 
Human  Eights,  from  all  the  oppressed  Eaces  of  Mankind, 
and  learn  conciliation  and  justice. 

Although  in  the  Narrative  I  have  given,  the  picture  ap 
pears  gloomy,  yet  there  is  a  bright  side  to  every  cloud,  and 
a  peaceful  calm  after  every  storm.  Deplorable  as  has  been 
the  detail  of  wrongs,  we  know  that  they  have  not  been 
done  for  the  sake  of  the  wrongs,  but  rather  in  consequence 
of  unfortunate  conditions,  and  a  misapprehension  of  the 
necessities  of  the  case.  As  soon  as  our  people  calmly  con 
sider  the  matter,  and  in  their  quiet  moments  review  what 
has  passed,  their  generous  emotions  will  burst  forth ;  and 
as  with  the  voice  of  one  man,  we  shall  all  exclaim,  "  Those 
evils  shall  be  repressed  ;  there  must  and  will  be  expiation 
for  these  wrongs,  and  redemption  for  this  long-suffering 
and  oppressed,  but  still  NOT  exterminated  people." 


CORRESPONDENCE. 

NOTE    FROM    THE    AUTHOR. 

15  LAIGHT-STEEET,  NEW  YORK,  April  20,  1857. 

DEAR  MADAM: 

The  many  excellent  thoughts  to  which  your  tongue 
and  pen  have  given  utterance,  together  with  the  experi 
ence  you  have  had  in  Frontier  Life,  prompt  me  to  ask 
your  views  in  regard  to  the  most  appropriate  means  for 
the  prevention  of  Indian  hostilities,  and  of  elevating  both 
Eaces  above  the  love,  or  occasion  of  war.  An  answer  at 
your  earliest  convenience  will  oblige, 

Yours  sincerely, 

JOHN  BEESON. 
To  Eliza  W.  Farnham. 


REPLY. 

Mr.  JOHN  BEESON, 

SIR  : — Your  note  of  April  20th  reached  me  yesterday ; 
and  in  compliance  with  the  request  it  contains,  I  hasten  to 
put  in  writing  a  few  thoughts  on  the  question  it  relates  to. 
I  have  always  felt  a  deep  interest  in  the  Indian  Kace,  and 
as  an  American  woman  have  lamented  the  wrongs  my 
country  has  inflicted  on  those  people.  And  there  is  no 
work  to  which  patriotism  and  national  pride,  as  well  as  hu 
manity,  would  more  warmly  prompt  me,  than  that  which 
should  be  undertaken  with  the  objects  you  set  forth. 

That  the  Indians  are  capable  of  being  raised  from  the 
Savage  state,  and  developed  to  a  condition  which  would 
place  them  within  the  pale  of  Civilization,  and  give  them 
the  blessing  of  mental  and  spiritual  growth,  I  have  not,  for 


A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS.  135 

many  years,  doubted.  They  are  a  people  of  strong  char 
acter,  and,  in  their  natural  conditions,  possessed  of  noble 
physical  endowments.  There  is  not  a  better  nature  on  the 
globe,  in  many  respects,  than  our  Eed  Man  possesses. 
How  rarely,  until  mean  and  selfish  Whites  compel  him, 
does  he  debase  himself  by  the  indulgence  of  low  appe 
tites  !  How  little  gluttony,  sensuality,  or  meanness  of  any 
sort,  apart  from  his  war  acts,  and  the  treacheries  they  call 
for,  does  he  ever  exhibit  in  his  uncorrupted  state  ! 

The  few  attempts  which  have  been  systematically  made 
to  elevate  and  improve  these  people,  have,  with  all  their 
imperfections  of  method,  and  narrowness  of  purpose,  been 
attended  with  sufficient  success,  I  think,  to  warrant  the 
belief  that  broader  and  more  enlightened  views,  faithfully 
reduced  to  practice,  would  be  attended  with  results  of 
which  we  might  be  proud.  We  have  taken  the  Indian's 
patrimony  and  home.  We  are  better  tenants  of  the  earth 
than  he  was ;  and  our  titles  ought  to  be  paramount  to  his, 
because  the  great  purposes  of  God  are  better  served  by  us 
than  by  him.  But  the  right  to  dispossess  him  is  ours  by 
virtue  of  our  superiority  ;  and  this  ought  to  be  his  perfect 
guaranty  against  wrong  from  us.  Has  it  been  so  ?  Has 
the  one  Democratic  Government  on  the  globe — the  exam 
ple  to  all  nations — cared  for,  or  oppressed  and  destroyed 
its  dependent  tribes  ?  Alas  !  History  answers  this  ques 
tion  too  mournfully  to  every  human  soul ! 

Our  Indians  are  now  dwindled  down  to  mere  handfuls 
of  scattered  men,  and  women,  and  children,  who  have 
neither  the  grandeur  of  the  Savage,  nor  a  semblance  of 
the  power  of  the  civilized  human  being.  The  labor  that 
has  been  done  among  them,  for  the  most  part  confined  to 
religious  teaching  of  opinions  and  Faith,  has  been  very 
nearly,  if  not  quite,  counterbalanced  by  the  evils  which 
have  followed  close  upon  the  advent  of  the  Missionary. 
He  has  often,  by  the  operation  of  causes  beyond  his  con 
trol,  been  made  the  involuntary  instrument  of  opening  the 
way  for  the  mercenary  Trader,  with  all  his  prolific  train 
of  vices.  In  this  respect  I  can  not  withhold  the  expression 
of  my  admiration  for  the  superior  wisdom,  or  power,  or 
faithfulness  of  the  Eomish  Church,  which  has  indisputably 


136  A  PLEA  FOE  THE  INDIANS. 

succeeded  in  a  much  greater  measure  in  protecting  its  con 
verted  tribes  from  these  dreadful  evils.  You  and  I,  who 
have  seen  the  Indians  of  the  Pacific  slope  of  our  continent, 
know  from  personal  observation  how  the  tribes  which 
were  Christianized  by  those  noble  old  Jesuit  Priests, 
though  often  far  inferior  to  our  Eastern  Indians,  were,  as 
long  as  they  remained  under  the  rule  of  that  Church,  gen 
erally  unvitiated.  Perhaps  one  reason  for  this  superior 
result  might  be  found  in  the  fact,  that  Civilization  travels 
less  with  the  Eomish  than  the  Protestant  Missionary  ;  but 
I  think  another  would  also  be  seen  in  the  fact  that  the  lat 
ter,  with  equal  faithfulness  and  earnestness,  works  more 
purely  on  the  Intellectual  and  Spiritual  plan.  He  labors 
to  instil  his  faith  and  implant  ideas,  to  the  total  neglect 
often  of  training  the  desires  and  appetites  to  Civilized  wants, 
and  thereby  securing  a  willing  devotion  in  some  degree  at 
least  to  manual  labor,  which  would  supply  them. 

This,  which  was  a  part  of  both  the  Philosophy  and  Kelig- 
ion  of  the  Jesuit,  we,  I  think,  should  adopt  fully  into  our 
system  of  treatment ;  and  then,  with  our  progressive,  intel 
lectual,  and  moral  views,  our  improved  means  of  training 
and  educating,  our  juster  perception  of  the  Indian  character 
and  its  attributes,  we  should  reap  rewards  worthy  the  con 
sideration  of  the  Christian  and  Philanthropist. 

The  women  of  America  could  put  their  hands  to  a  very 
humane  task  in  reforming  the  treatment  of  the  Indian,  and 
thereby  redeeming  the  Nation  from  the  shame  and  disgrace 
of  a  wrong  pursued  to  the  extermination  of  its  victims. 
If  some  widely  concerted  plan  of  action  could  be  adopted 
throughout  our  country,  and  means  be  raised,  whereby 
humane  and  intelligent  persons  could  be  secured  to  co 
operate  with  a  National  Association  for  the  purpose  of  im 
proving  and  elevating  the  Indian,  what  a  noble  work 
might  thus  be  done  !  I  speak  of  my  own  sex  particularly, 
because  it  is  taking  its  position  in  organized  philanthropies 
more  broadly  and  generally  in  this  day  than  ever  before, 
and  because  I  fully  believe  that  the  world  is  to  receive  its 
highest  and  purest  service  of  this  sort  from  us.  The  heart 
of  woman  is  the  purest  fountain  of  human  love  and  char 
ity  on  earth,  and  could  we  but  rightly  appeal  to  the  Amer- 


A  PLEA  FOE  THE  INDIANS.  137 

ican  Women  in  behalf  of  the  Indian — could  we  bring  be 
fore  them  the  wretchedness  and  degradation  ,of  these 
unfortunates,  whom  their  charities  could  relieve — could 
we  make  them  see  the  Indian  mother  and  her  children  in 
their  houses  of  poverty  and  misery,  robbed  of  the  joys 
and  satisfactions  of  savage  life,  with  nothing  in  their 
place  but  sin  and  desolation — I  am  sure  their  hearts  would 
not  be  cold  to  the  appeal  so  made.  There  is  benevolence 
enough  among  us  to  answer  these  calls,  could  it  but  be 
moved  to  an  appreciation  of  their  reality  and  its  own 
power  of  relief.  And  as  it  is  in  all  senses  more  blessed  to 
give  than  to  receive,  the  Indian  would  not  be  the  only  re 
cipient  of  benefit.  All  good  work  blesses  the  doer  as  well  as 
the  receiver ;  and  if  our  women,  young  and  old,  would 
take  earnestly  hold  on  this  pure  and  noble  charity,  they 
would  themselves  become  pure  and  noble  in  doing  it.  It 
could  provoke  no  partisan  warfare,  and  might,  in  that  re 
spect  commend  itself  to  every  class  and  all  sections  of  our 
country.  North  and  South,  East  and  West  might  join, 
and  work  harmoniously  together,  in  caring  for  those  whom, 
North  and  South,  East  and  West,  have  equally  depraved 
and  wronged.  And  the  page  of  American  History  would 
brighten  from  the  day  when  such  a  movement  should  be 
come  efficient  among  us.  There  would  be  one  National 
sin  replaced  by  a  substantial  and  noble  National  Charity. 

I  know  it  is  common  to  deny  the  capacities  of  the  In 
dian.  People  who  know  little  or  nothing  of  them,  who  sit 
at  home  and  hear  of  the  wars  they  wage,  and  of  the  destitu 
tion  and  carelessness  in  which  they  live,  are  apt  to  fancy 
that  there  is  nothing  to  be  done  for  or  with  them,  but  to 
help  them  die  out  as  quickly  as  possible.  But  those  who 
know  the  Indian,  or  have  sought  him  for  any  but  base  and 
mercenary  purposes,  think  very  differently.  And  the  tes 
timony  of  one  humane  man,  who  has  lived  among  them, 
to  do  them  good;  to  call  out  and  prove  their  better  capaci 
ties,  is  worth  that  of  a  regiment  of  mere  Adventurers  or 
Traders,  who  have  sought  only  pleasure  or  profit  among 
them.  Many  of  these  men  bear  high  testimony  to  the  In 
dian  character  and  ability.  I  met  during  the  last  winter, 
in  Iowa,  with  Colonel  Vaughan,  our  Indian  Agent  in  Ne- 


138  A  PLEA  FOE  THE  INDIANS. 

braska.  This  gentleman  has  spent  seventeen  years  among 
the  Aborigines,  mostly  those  of  the  North- West,  and  he 
fully  confirms  the  most  favorable  reports  of  other  persons, 
as  to  the  capacity  of  these  people  to  be  improved,  and  ed 
ucated  to  virtuous  and  useful  lives.  He  said  that  among 
his  Tribes  there  was  as  much  mechanical  talent  as  among 
an  equal  number  of  Whites  who  were  as  little  instructed ; 
and  that  he  had  a  piece  of  carving,  the  work  of  one  of  his 
Indians,  that  was  matchless  in  beauty  and  perfection  of 
finish,  and  this  skill  he  assured  me  was  by  no  means  so 
uncommon  among  them  as  we  are  apt  to  suppose  it,  but  he 
added,  "  We  lack  all  means  of  educating  it.  There  is  now 
nothing  to  be  done  with  our  Tribes  up  there,  but  to  look 
mournfully  on  from  year  to  year,  while,  for  want  of  some 
right  help,  they  waste  themselves  and  their  poor  resources. 
In  ten  or  fifteen,  at  most,  without  some  new  provision  for 
them,  they  must  be  destitute  and  starving." 

It  is  from  such  a  condition  and  such  an  impending  fate, 
if  I  understand  your  benevolent  purpose,  that  you  ask  aid 
in  saving  the  American  Indian.  I  trust  and  pray,  dear  sir, 
you  may  be  met  with  a  hearty  response  by  my  countrymen 
and  women.  Yours  truly, 

E.  W.  FARNHAM. 
YORK,  May  5th,  1857. 


NOTE    PROM     THE     AUTHOR. 

15  LAIGHT-STREET,  NEW  YORK,  April  2d,  1857. 

DEAR  MADAM  : 

I  have  read  with  admiration  your  noble  poein  of 
Nanuntenoo,  and  knowing  the  deep  sympathy  you  have 
so  often  and  so  beautifully  expressed  in  behalf  of  the  In 
dian  Eace,  I  submit  for  your  perusal  the  accompanying 
manuscript,  hoping  that  the  knowledge  of  additional  facts 
— or  at  least  a  word  of  good  cheer — may  be  evolved  from 
your  gifted  mind,  with  some  new  and  soul-stirring  in 
spirations  in  their  behalf.  It  was  my  intention  to  have 
sketched  an  ideal  of  Government,  which  I  have  for  some 
time  past  been  revolving  in  my  own  mind  ;  but  having,  in 


A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS. 

the  order  of  Providence,  had  an  opportunity  of  perusing  a 
book  recently  published,  entitled  "  Shahmah  in  Pursuit  of 
Freedom,"  consisting  of  a  series  of  Letters  on  the  most 
prominent  features  of  Life  and  Policy  in  this  country,  I 
find  my  thought  not  only  anticipated,  bnt  invested  with 
a  more  complete  and  satisfactory  expression  than  I  could 
have  given  it,  at  least  in  the  small  compass  to  which  I 
have  confined  myself.  I  can,  therefore,  cheerfully  recom 
mend  all  who  may  open  these  desultory  sketches,  to  read 
this  book.  I  believe  this  work  to  be  such  a  one  as  the 
highest  wants  of  the  age  both  suggest  and  demand.  The 
"signs  of  promise"  are  continually  multiplying  and  bright 
ening  around  us;  and  I,  for  one,  can  see  that  they  are 
truly  leading  us  out  into  new  eras  of  Progression  and 
Beauty — into  new  Gospels  of  Love,  and  Harmony,  and 
Happiness.  Yours  with  esteem, 

JOHN  BEESON. 
To  Frances  H.  Green,  Jersey  City. 


EEPLT. 

JERSEY  CITY,  April  12th,  1957. 

DEAR  SIR: 

I  have  read  your  papers  with  mingled  emotions  of 
horror  and  thankfulness — horror  at  their  almost  incredible 
disclosures,  and  gratitude  that  the  testimony  which  you 
have  so  truly — so  nobly  borne — was  to  you  an  inspiration 
of  personal  safety,  and  brought  you.  out  of  Sodom  to  de 
clare  it  before  the  world.  Good  Angels  led  you  forth; 
and  they  will  NOT  forsake  you.  The  Future  is  full  of 
promise.  The  coming  Harvest  is  rich;  and  when  it  is 
gathered  in,  will  not  the  Lord  of  the  Harvest  remember 
the  most  faithful  of  his  laborers  ? 

I  agree  with  you  perfectly,  that  there  is  neither  good 
feeling,  nor  good  sense,  in  that  common  sentiment,  that 
affects  to  foreshadow"  the  total  extinction  of  the  Indian 
Tribes.  The  more  closely  I  study,  and  the  more  inti- 


140  A  PLEA  FOE  THE  INDIANS. 

mately  I  know  them,  the  more  I  am  persuaded  that,  in  the 
natural  order  of  things,  this  is  impossible. 

It  seems  to  be  a  law,  that  the  more  highly  individualized 
every  type  of  being  becomes,  the  more  persistent  will  be 
the  race  it  represents,  because  in  the  more  positive  condi 
tions  which  it  unfolds,  there  is  a  greater  tenacity  of  life 
and  power.  I  have  never  seen,  in  any  people,  a  more  de 
cided  individuality  than  among  the  Indians.  The  grand 
outline  of  the  character  is  similar;  but  the  shades  are 
strongly  defined,  and  laid  on  with  varied  and  graphic 
touches.  There  are  several  reasons  for  this.  They  not 
only  develope  naturally,  but  under  the  strongest  and  most 
inspiring  stimuli.  In  their  education  there  is  nothing  of 
the  petty  common-place  that  almost  inevitably  creeps  into 
the  more  artificial  systems ;  but  they  have  instead,  untrans 
lated,  and  intranslateable  Headings  of  Life ;  and  of  these 
they  become  close  and  loving  students.  Midnight  dark 
ness,  noonday  light,  clouds  and  stars,  running  water,  curl 
ing  smoke,  the  great  blue  above,  the  green  earth  below, 
birds  and  flowers,  rivers  and  mountains,  all  the  far  away 
and  massive,  all  the  fine  and  delicate,  all  the  shadowy  vague 
and  obscure,  are  full  of  those  mystic  utterances  which  are 
to  them,  more  than  to  any  other  people,  the  vernacular 
language  of  the  soul,  and  thus  their  spiritual  faculties  are 
continually  nourished;  and  by  their  inflective  turn  of 
thought  and  character  these  impressions  are  continually 
deepened. 

There  is  no  law  in  Nature  that  requires  the  destruction 
of  such  a  people.  The  prophecy  is  impious.  The  fact 
that  millions  of  them  have  been  swept  away  by  a  ra 
pacious  and  all- engrossing  Selfishness,  does  not  affect  the 
question  in  the  least ;  for  the  Indian  can  not  live  with  a 
bullet  in  his  brain,  or  a  slip  of  cold  steel  in  his  heart,  any 
better  than  the  White  Man.  Let  no  one  believe  that  in 
practically  carrying  out  this  barbarous  idea,  he  is  fulfilling 
an  ordinance  of  Heaven ;  but  rather  let  him  beware  how 
he  even  tacitly  sanctions  this  murderous  sentiment,  lest,  by 
a  double  wrong,  he  bring  on  his  own  head  the  blood  01 
the  Guiltless. 

The  Future  of  the  Indians  is  to  me  inexpressibly  beauti- 


A  PLEA  FOR  THE   INDIANS.  141 

fill.  I  wish  you  could  see  it  as  I  do — I  wish  they  could. 
The  wand  of  the  Inspiring  Angel  has  touched  me.  The 
great  cloud-curtain  seems  drawn  away  from  the  distant 
horizon.  I  see  them  everywhere  rousing  from  their  supine 
indifference  to  the  joy  of  healthful  and  genial  occupation. 
Their  great  mechanical  ingenuity  opens  ways  and  means, 
and  finds  scope  and  direction,  for  itself.  They  emulate 
each  other,  unfolding  higher  excellence  in  workmanship 
and  superior  inventive  power.  Their  condition  does  not 
consist  entirely  of  the  prosy  round  of  common  working- 
day  affairs ;  but  they  inhale  the  aroma,  they  absorb  the 
beauty,  they  develop  the  poetry  of  life.  Occupation  is 
relieved  by  healthful  and  pleasurable  exercises,  and  occa 
sionally  brightened  by  refining  and  elevating  amuse 
ments. 

Their  reflective  turn  of  mind — but  especially  their  habits 
of  correct  observation  and  fine  discrimination,  in  which  last 
they  excel  all  other  people,  must,  under  true  conditions, 
unfold  into  the  traits  of  philosophers  and  naturalists,  as 
certainly  as  the  germ  of  the  acorn,  by  its  own  inherent 
power,  rises  into  the  lineaments  and  stature  of  an  Oak. 

Their  fine  sense  of  the  beautiful,  and  their  feeling  for 
Nature  in  all  her  moods,  will  as  truly  call  forth  and  cul 
tivate  the  various  interpretations  of  their  "Written  Word — 
which  we  have  named  the  Fine,  or  liberal  Arts.  And  I  see 
that  these  strong  determinations  will  have  development. 
Their  Muses  will  find  speech,  and  by  turns  inspire  and  re 
fine  them.  I  see  all  these  noble  powers,  under  the  in 
fluence  of  a  truer  culture,  bringing  forth  their  legitimate 
fruits. 

Thus,  from  the  well-balanced,  intelligent,  and  self-gov 
erned  Individual  man,  will  radiate  a  power,  which  in  the 
State  will  again  converge  into  an  archetype  of  Human 
Government,  based  on  the  broadest  principles  of  justice, 
and  created  and  controlled  only  by  those  who  understand 
its  authority  and  can  direct  its  application.  The  whole 
character  of  the  Indian — his  strong  sense  of  justice — his 
great  magnanimity— his  utter  contempt  of  falsehood  and 
meanness — all  mark  and  determine  it — that  through  him 
may  be  called  forth  that  Great  Ideal  of  a  True  Democracy, 


142  A  PLEA  FOB  THE  INDIANS 

which,  as  yet,  has  been  unfolded  only  to  manifest  some  in 
herent  and  fatal  imperfection.  And  if  we,  as  a  whole  peo 
ple,  do  not  return  to  the  platform  of  1776,  and  the  political 
Faith  of  our  Fathers,  we  may  have  the  mortification  of 
seeing  this  poor  and  despised  Eace  assume  the  position 
which  we,  of  right,  should  occupy  as  the  Teachers  of  Na 
tions.  Yes,  the  Indian,  whom  we  have  only  degraded,  is 
soon  to  unfold  the  highest  social  and  civil  conditions ; 
and  Ministers  from  Legislative  bodies,  that  convene  in 
haughtier  halls,  will  sit  at  his  feet  to  drink  of  the  pure  and 
simple  wisdom  that  flows  out  from  his  council-fires. 

I  can  not  forbear  saying,  because  I  know  it  will  please 
you  and  other  friends  of  the  Ked  Man,  that  I  have  opened 
a  mine  of  wealth  in  the  Traditions  of  several  once-power 
ful  Tribes,  which.  I  propose  soon  to  write,  arrange,  and 
publish — not  as  a  collection  of  dry  Histories,  but  in  the 
form  of  stories,  which  come  to  me  invested  with  all  the 
enchantments  of  romance,  beauty,  grandeur,  and  immortal 
life-interest. 

My  heart  goes  along  with  the  picture  I  have  drawn. 
My  restless  hand  is  reaching  out  for  its  work.  I  devote 
and  consecrate  myself  anew.  God  and  Angels  htlping 
me,  I  will  do  what  I  may  to  make  the  good  prophecy 
present  and  real.  Yours  respectfully, 

FKANCES  H.  G-KEJKN. 


But  little  remains  to  be  said;  for,  from  the  whole 
weight  of  these  testimonies,  it  is  easy  to  see  that  not 
only  the  honor,  but  the  safety  of  our  own  people  is  in 
volved  in  these  disturbances.  For  this  reason,  the  ques 
tion  assumes  a  National  aspect;  and  protection  of  the 
Indians  is  but  another  name  for  the  common  welfare. 
Urged  by  these  reflections,  we  are  about  forming  a  Na 
tional  Association  for  the  Protection  and  Elevation  of  the 
Aborigines  of  this  country,  composed  of  such  as  will  help 
us  to  inaugurate  and  sustain  a  truer  condition  of  things. 

In  this  movement  the  most  cheering  demonstrations  of 
sympathy,  with  promised  support  and  co-operation,  have 


A  PLEA  FOR  THE  INDIANS.  143 

already  visited  me.  Aknost  every  mail  brings  letters  to 
this  effect. 

I  would  here  especially  invite  the  co-operation  of  all 
who  are  willing  to  assist  us.  If  they  do  not  choose  to 
identify  themselves  with  the  Association,  they  may  still 
lend  both  their  exertions  and  their  means.  There  will  be 
openings  on  every  hand  for  work,  that  will  not  only  aid, 
but  encourage  and  cheer  us  on  to  final  victory. 

Certain  it  is,  that  whatever  we  do,  can  not  be  done  too 
soon ;  for  with  the  latest  news  from  Oregon,  I  hear  that 
the  Indians  are  becoming  greatly  dissatisfied  at  being 
driven  from  their  own  good  and  fertile  lands  in  Kogue 
Eiver  Yalley,  into  the  wild  and  untenantable  mountain 
passes.  So  great,  indeed,  is  the  disturbance  among  them, 
that  the  White  Settlers  are  in  a  constant  dread  of  a  revolt 
and  renewal  of  war. 

Thus  we  see  that  Humanity  and  Patriotism  both  require 
and  demand  immediate  and  energetic  action.  Let  all, 
then,  who  cherish  these  noble  and  ennobling  virtues,  rally 
round  the  standard  of  the  suffering  Eed  man,  until  the 
tramp  of  gathering  millions  shall  shake  the  land  to  its 
center;  and  in  the  thunderous  volume  of  concentrated 
power,  send  forth  the  truest  expression  of  a  great  People's- 
Will.  And  this  will  be  nothing  less  than  an  act  of  self- 
preservation  ;  for,  in  restoring  freedom  to  others,  we  shall 
forever  consecrate  and  protect  our  own. 


THE    END. 


TO    THE    READER. 

IP  the  perusal  of  this  Volume  has  awakened  in  your 
mind  a  deeper  sympathy  for  the  Eed  Man's  Race,  and  a 
more  earnest  desire  for  the  highest  good  of  our  common 
country,  the  Author  would  invite  your  hearty  co-oper 
ation,  by  contributing  for  its  wide  circulation  throughout 
every  State,  Territory,  City,  and  Town  of  our  vast  do 
main.  The  profits  will  be  appropriated  to  beneficent  pur 
poses  of  universal  good. 

Price,  25  cents,  single  copy.  For  $1  four  copies  will 
be  sent  to  any  desired  address,  post-paid.  The  usual 
discount  to  Agents  and  the  Trade. 

"THE   LIBERAL   SOUL  DEVISETH   LIBERAL  THINGS:"   to 

such  the  Author  recommends  the  Book  and  the  People 
for  whom  it  is  written. 

Address,  JOHN  BEESON, 

15  LAI&HT-ST.,  NEW  YORK. 


FROM  AN  OLD 


EDITOR   TIDING:—  I    have   received? 
with  agreeable  surprise,  two  copies  of 
your  paper—  of  Jtfly  27,  and  Aag.  3.  IV 
is  more  than  I  expected  to  live  tosee^— 
a  newspaper,  edited  and  printed  »o  near 
to  my  former  borne.    Ba  assured  sir,. 
that  the  perusal  of  these  papers,    will* 
the  news  of  old  friends   of  more  than 
twenty  years  ago,  gave  me  great  pleas 
ure,  because  I  see  the  proof  of  thrift 
and  progress*.     I   remember  taking-  » 
bag  of  corn  to  Ashland  when  the  grfot 
mill  was  a  kind  of  pestle  and  morter  tor 
pound  the  corn.     Our  wheat  floor  at 
that  time  came  to  the  valley  on  pad* 
mules;  but  now  I  see  from  your  adver 
tisements,  of  various  factorieM,   mills, 
stores  and  stage  lines,  that   there  is  at 
Ashland    everything  which  an  enter' 
prising  people  need.     And   that   from 
a  small  beginning  it  has  become  quite 
a  centre  of  commerce.    I  am  especially 
with  your  excellent  heading,  "Lidepen* 
pendent  on  all  Sutyeeto*  waich  1  under 
stand  to  mean  thai  yon  will  not  be  the 
I  mere  mouth-piece  for  sects  or  parties, 
as  such,  but  for  the  highest  truth  and 
the  most  reliable  and   nseful  informa 
tion  from  all  quarters.     With  a  faith 
ful  adherance  to  your  chosen  motto,  it 
is  morally  certain  that  your  paper  will 
advance   not   only   the    "interests   of 
Southern  Oregon"  but  of  all  humanity 
wherever  it  is  read. 

You  make  allusion  to  the  "Pioneers 
of  Southern  Oregon,"  and  as  I  am  one 
of  them  I  can  take  a  retrospect  of  those 
exciting  times  and  of  the  events  which 
have  followed;  from  which  I  learn  that 
the  highest  wisdom  is  obedience  to  the 
Golden  Eule:  "All  things  whatsoever 
that  ye  would  that  men  should  do  onto 
you,  do  ye  also  unto  them;  for  on  thia 
hangs  all  the  law  and  all  the  proph 
ets."  Kespectfully,  JOHN  BEESON. 


A    SEQUEL 

TO   TIIE 

FLEA.  FOR   THE    USTDIAISTS 

IS  JUST  ISSUED— PRICE  20  CENTS. 


CONTENTS. 

1.  An  Appeal  in  Behalf  of  the  Indians. 

2.  Correspondence  with  the  British  Aboriginal  Aid  Association. 

3.  Letters  to  Rev.  H.  W.  Beecher,  in  which  Objections  are  answered, 
and  a  Way  indicated  by  which  to  save  the  Indians. 

4.  Review  of  a  Speech  delivered  by  the  Rev.  Theodore  Parker. 

6.  A  Petition  in  Behalf  of  the  Citizens  of  Oregon  and  Washington  Terri 
tory  for  Indemnity  on  account  of  Losses  through  Indian  Wars. 
6.  An  Address  to  the  Women  of  America, 


The  PLEA  and  the  SEQUEL  it  is  hoped  will  be  as  Missionaries,  preaching 
Justice  and  Benignity  for  all,  especially  for  the  much  wronged  Indian. 
They  will  cost  nothing  for  food  and  raiment,  and  will  travel  to  any  part 
of  our  States  or  Territories  for  three  cents,  if  wrapped  newspaper  fashion, 
with  the  ends  open. 

The  grand  object  in  the  sale  of  these  books,  is  to  open  a  way  by  which 
we  may  save  the  remnants  of  a  Race  whose  country  we  are  in  possession 
of.  Justice  and  honor  alike  prompt  the  resolve  to  transmit  intelligent 
and  thrifty  tribes  of  the  Aborigines  of  our  country  to  our  children's  child 
ren,  who  will  be  more  honored  as  the  equal  allies  of  a  noble  race,  than  by 
written  histories  of  an  ignoble  conquest,  or  digging  for  the  relics  of  an 
extinct  people. 

Four  copies  of  the  PLEA  will  be  sent,  post  paid,  for  one  dollar,  to  as 
many  different  addresses  ;  or  five  of  the  SEQUEL,  on  the  same  terms. 

Donations  or  Orders  should  be  addressed  to 

JOHN  BEESON,  15  LuigUt  Street,  N.  Y.,  or  to 
THATCHER  &  HUTCHINSON,  Publishers,  323  Broadway,  N.  Y. 
*  *  A  liberal  discount  made  to  wholesale  purchasers. 


